1st Place Isn't Exactly the Best
by condescending advice
Summary: COMPLETE!Sakura Haruno is a 16 year old girl that is starting out at a new school in Osaka Japan.What happens when she meets the guy of her dreams...that eventually turns against her?[sasuXsaku fic]AUkind of oocish
1. Chapter 1

**_1ST PLACE ISN'T EXACTLY THE BEST_**

_**-CHAPTER ONE-**_

_**It's Saturday…isn't it?**_

Haruno Sakura was a normal 16 year old girl.If you excluded the fact that she was extremely talented in the arcade and video game department and that she was extremely pretty,even if she never DID admit it.She was also highly known as a rich family's latest heir.But both her parents didn't receive money by the billions in the confinements of their home in Hong Kong.They traveled all over the place for business and other things since they owned various companies all over the place,leaving poor little Sakura to live in her newly bought condo in Osaka that was apparently a birthday present from her parents.

She didn't mind living alone at all,but she wished that she had at least stayed in Hong Kong where her friends were.It didn't completely matter to her that boys would be swarming over her in crowds,as long as her friends were there with her.Here,she was just a stranger and was expected to go to a new school.As you could probably tell,the expectations from her parents were rather high.Sakura or course never complained since she didn't want to trouble her parents since they were constantly busy.

Now,our pink haired heroin (or rather,main character) is apparently sleeping in bed at 8:30 in the morning.

**IN SAKURA'S HEAD…**

It was a normal day and Sakura was walking to school.She was humming to herself until a raven black lamborghini pulled up beside her near the side walk.

Inner Sakura: Wow…I always wanted one of those cars!

She was standing there dumb-founded until the car door opened and a cute boy got out.He had the most handsome face features and he had short,messy raven colored hair that matched his car.He stood in front of Sakura and gently kissed her hand.The pink haired girl blushed and said,

"What is your name?"

Inner Sakura: would you care to add your number too!

But when the boy opened his mouth to reply,a shrill ringing came from his mouth.

"What the hell…?"

**BACK TO REALITY…**

She woke up not being able to witness the ending of her dream and sighed.She hesitantly opened her eyes and sat uo in bed.

"I wonder what time it is…?"

She rubbed the sleep out of her eyes before she glanced at her alarm clock which was ringing like hell.Her eyes grew wide as her brain registered what time it was.

"8:30!I'm going to be late for school!"

Sakura hurriedly jumped out of bed,not caring to fix it and ran to the washroom.She successfully combed her hair and brushed her teeth.She was about to put on her new uniform until her cell phone rang.

Inner Sakura: Why the hell does everyone decide to call me when I'm really busy!

"I better answer that…it might be mother…"

To her surprise,she was completely right.It was her mother who was obviously unaware just how busy her pink-haired daughter was.

"Hello,mom?Yeah,you're not disturbing anything…"

Inner Sakura: Yeah,right…more like you're disturbing my desperate rush to get out of here.

"Oh,well okay sweetie…I'm just calling to apologize for me and your father forcing you to live alone in your new condo."

Sakura chuckled to herself,"It's okay mom,I'm fine.I'm pretty much used to this condo already!Just go back to work and don't worry about me!"

She said bye to her mother before she left out the door of the condominium building's lobby with her book bag slung over one shoulder.She didn't notice where she was going until she bumped into a boy that was about the same age as her.He also had the same raven colored hair,dark eyes and ice-cold look as the boy that was in her dream.

Sakura scratched the back of her head and a slight blush grazed her cheeks.

Inner Sakura: Isn't that the boy in my dream!

"Uh…gomen…"

The boy looked at her weird and said absolutely nothing.

Inner Sakura: Must be shy or something…wait…I'm going to be late for school!

Sakura got up without the boy even saying a word to her and ran to where her school was.Apparently,there were no students walking along side with her or even near her.People walking were looking at her weird too.What was even worse was that a whole crowd of guys were basically stalking her.The crowd grew and grew,but the poor pink-haired girl hadn't noticed.She was completely used to it by now.

"Uhh…I guess that every student in my new school owns a car…a.s.d "

But it still seemed really weird to her that not one whole crowd of cars were driving past her heading in the direction of the school.Now,Sakura was full-out panicking.

"What if I'm completely lost and I'm never found!Wait…I'm on a street with people walking in the same direction as me…go figure…"

She asked the nearest person where her new high school was and the person pointed in the direction where she was heading.

"That's weird…"

But before she could usher a word out of her mouth,she came across the gates of her new school.

Inner Sakura: finally!I was getting worried!

She reached out to open the gates and….

They were chained together.Sakura almost went ballistic!

"WHAT THE HELL!I COME TO SCHOOL AND THEY LOCK ME OUT!IT'S NOT EVEN 9 YET!"

She pushed the gate to try and probably rip the chains apart…and not surprisingly,it didn't work.

She finally gave up and yelled,"BAKA DOBES THAT LOCKED THE SCHOOL GATES!"

Then she felt a tug at her clothes from below her knees.She gave out an immediate scream and yelled,"What the hell was that!"

She looked down to see a little kid tugging at her red skirt and looking up at her.

Inner Sakura: Phew…it's only a little ankle biter…

"Miss…"

"What do you want…hm?"

"There's no school today….it's a Saturday…"

A sweatdrop formed at the back of her head as she looked at the little girl with astonishment.

Inner Sakura: how could this little kid even remember what day it is and I can't!

Sakura smiled sheepishly as she ruffled the little girl's hair and handed her a handful of candy that she had stashed for herself.She started walking home and it started drizzling.

"Just my luck…I hate this…I can't believe that it's a Saturday…I should be down at the arcade!But then the gamer fan boys would be after me…"

That gave her an idea…

"I know!I"ll just go home,put on really guy-ish clothes and go down to the nearest arcade and beat the hell out of those gamers!"

She was so 'giddy' at the thought of it all that she hadn't notice the rather large fanboy group behind her.They were all running up to her asking her out,but she was completely lost in her thoughts.

'Let's see…I have that really big pair of jeans and that triple XL sweater that mother thought would be handy (don't know why though).But then my hair's pink…and guys don't exactly have pink hair asd.I know!I'll just have to use that big cap that my older cousin gave me!'

It wasn't until she was halfway home that she noticed the crowd of guys.They had started running to catch up with her and she wasn't exactly happy about that since she could barely breathe now.

Inner Sakura: Bakayaros!I'm trying to get home now!

She started to run as she turned the next corner.She finally lost them at about noon and headed for home.

Inner Sakura: baka temes! I was already tired from running around my condo trying to get to school!

When she finally got home,she plopped down on her bed and sighed heavily.Guys would always chase her when she was out in public.That was the downside of appearing in more than 100 fashion magazines.Well,it wasn't something that she would always want to do,but at least it paid the bills…When she finally caught her breath,she brought out the clothes that she had planned to wear.

"Hey,at least those bakayaro won't be bugging me or anything…unless something blows my cover of course…"

She carefully tied up her hair in a bun and made sure that it wouldn't fall apart on her.She didn't exactly succeed after the first couple of tries,but she eventually got it.Then she pulled on the rather large jeans and secured them on eith a belt.

"At least they weren't as big as they were when my cousin gave them to me…"

Sakura then sighed as she pulled on the sweater cautiously as if not to get lost in it.

"Finally…the transformation is complete!"

She glanced at herself in the mirror before she stuck the big cap on her head.She looked rather skinny for a guy and quite short for one too.She sighed heavily and pulled on the cap which covered at least half of her face except for her mouth and nose.

"What would mother think if she saw me like this!"

Inner Sakura: she would think that you were some thug trying to mug her.

"Shut up,will ya!"

-Huh?Why!-

"Because I said so,baka!"

-Why are you calling ME baka!I basically AM you!-

She continued the inner debate with herself as she readjusted her clothing.

"Why don't you ever shut up!"

-Because I can't if you won't!-

Sakura locked the door behind her…

"And who made up that stupid rule?You!"

-DO I HAVE TO KEEP ON TELLING YOU!I _AM_ YOU!-

"Oh,right…sorry…self…?"

-You better be!-

"Mental note - try to find a way to shut up inner self before she starts thinking of suicide"

-Writing down mental note…wait…if I kill you…don't I kill myself too?-

"Yes,miss Haruno sakura's inner self,you do."

-Alright then,I promise to never do that,okay?-

"Okay…"

She finally emerged victorious from her battle with her self and was very surprised to find herself finally at the arcade.

Inner Sakura: wow…I'm here already!

She instantly took a seat at one of the racing games and swiped her power card in the slot.

"This is going to be one long day!"


	2. Chapter 2

**_1ST PLACE ISN'T EXACTLY THE BEST_**

**_-CHAPTER TWO-_**

_**Arcade prince!**_

_She finally emerged victorious from her battle with her self and was very surprised to find herself finally at the arcade._

_Inner Sakura: wow…I'm here already!_

_She instantly took a seat at one of the racing games and swiped her power card in the slot._

"_This is going to be one long day!" _

Sakura was playing in the arcade for quite a while until an older boy had approached her.

"Get out of my seat,punk!"

Sakura looked at him with the anger of a rabid dog ((trust me,those look really scary))

"You should be nice to a young lad - "

Inner Sakura: Damn!Almost gave it away!

"To what,a lady?Yeah, I should…considering that you are one you sissy!"

"I…uh…was going to say - to a young lad like myself asd…"

"Oh really,huh?Well,I'll battle against you for this seat!Little sissy boy!"

Inner Sakura: guys are so rude when they think that you're one of them…sigh

"I agree…"

The both swiped their cards and Sakura had instantly taken first place.

"You aren't so bad,sissy boy!"

Inner Sakura: Kick his ass,Sakura!You gotta kick this teme's ass!((She's talking to herself))

Before they knew it,there was a whole crowd of gamers behind them cheering for either person.Most of them were rooting for the other guy,but they clearly couldn't see that Sakura had him completely beat.Sakura wrapped up the game in no time,coming in first and nothing less.

"Look who's a sissy boy now,sissy boy!"

"Hey,at least I don't have a big - ass forehead!"

That completely made Sakura snap.She hated when people said that she had a big forehead.But it didn't make sense to her since her forehead was supposed to be covered by her hat.

"How the hell would you know if I had a big forehead,huh!"

Inner Sakura: WHAT IF MY HAT FELL OFF!I'LL HAVE TO RUN HOME TODAY TOO!I HATE 'FAME AND FORTUNE!

"Well…uh…nevermind!Just shut up!"

Sakura sighed in relief.

Inner Sakura: Phew!He's just being a complete bakayaro!

The older boy saw Sakura's sigh of relief and got suspicious.

"What are ya hindin' there,sissy boy?"

"Nothing,why do you ask?"

Inner Sakura: Please don't let him pull off my cap or anything!I don't see any escape routes here!

"Because you're hiding something under your HAT!"

He grabbed for Sakura's hat before she could even react.

Inner Sakura: Dammit!

She closed her eyes before he reached for it,ready for swarms of guys to be suffocating her,but they never came.

"You better not be starting a fight in the arcade,especially not MY arcade…"

The pink haired girl looked up and saw the same boy that she had run into earlier.

Inner Sakura: hey!It's that hot guy from before!Wait…better check if the hat's still on…

She patted her head stupidly and found that the hat was secure in place,not revealing a single strand of her pink hair.She looked up again to find the raven haired boy sticking out his hand,expecting her to take it.

"Ah..gomen…"

His eyes expanded in shock.

Inner Sakura: Uh…what the hell is he looking so weird at…oh wait…I just used my female voice!Damn!

"Yeah…uh…who - "

The boy's expression changed as he smirked and said,"I see you have some skill in arcade games.I'll challenge you to one."

"O…okay…?"

Inner Sakura: …what the hell?

"I"ll have to warn you…I've never been beaten…that's why they call me the arcade prince…"

"…Right…"

Inner Sakura: Arcade prince huh?Well,I'll kick his ass!Arcade games are my specialty!

They both decided on DDR .When they had swiped their cards.they prepared for their foot commands to appear on the screen.At first,they were totally tied,never missing a single command and completely focused.It was only near the end that someone had whispered something to the other boy and he fumbled on the last step.Sakura,however wasn't distracted and had taken 1st place,and ironically,the title of arcade prince((cause she's a girl)).

Inner Sakura: Ha!Take that!Arcade prince my ass!

The normal smirk plastered on the raven-haired boy's face was gone.The cold look was still there of course,but he looked as mad as ever.

"That wasn't fair!Some baka had told me something important!No one beats me at anything!I'm going to make your life a living hell!"((he's such a sore loser,I know))

Sakura didn't hear him at all since she was too busy listening to the crowd of people following them ever since the earlier accident yelling "Arcade Prince"over and over.It was only until Sakura noticed the scowl on the boy's face that she stopped and straightened up.

"Poise Sakura,poise…"She whispered to herself.

The boy looked at her and said,"Look,no one beats me at anything…you're gonna be sor…did you just say 'poise Sakura,poise'?"

"Uhh…what makes you think I said that!"

Inner Sakura: this guy can hear any damn thing!He's really cute though…asd.

The enraged raven haired boy pointed at the side of Sakura's face and said,"…Pink?Isnt' a famous magazine model's hair pink.And doesn't she have the same emerald eyes…as you?"

"What…?"

Inner Sakura: …he…he knows!

True enough,a lock of her pink hair tied with a bow protruding out from under her cap.The boy smirked arrogantly and said,"Remember,I'll make your life a living hell…if I ever see you again,miss ."((or ms.)).

Inner Sakura:He knows that I'm a girl!He might just tell every single guy here that I'm the fashion model that those guys ogle at!

The boy smirked even more arrogantly and said,"Should I announce something or should I just keep it to myself?"

"What the hell are you talking about?You must be talking about my sister!"

"Yeah…right…"

Inner Sakura: Baka TEME!I'm still a bit weak from this morning!Plus,I hate it when the paparazzi arrive…I just hate being famous…

He smirked and looked into the crowd.Not a single girl in sight.

"Guess what everyone?This person who just beat me right here is - "

"The new Arcade Prince!"

Everyone stared at Sakura weirdly,but then started cheering.

Inner Sakura: Smooth save Sakura…better get outta here for now.

Before she left the arcade,she turned to her new-found enemy and said,"Looks like I'm the new arcade prince!"

He raised an eyebrow in interest,"No one beats me ANYTHING!GOT THAT!How about a rematch..tomorrow?."

The pink haired girl smiled and said,"Alright,okay…here,tomorrow.At about 5?"

The boy nodded and Sakura added,"And yeah,I do have a sister."

Sakura left the arcade,pretty proud of herself.

"Phew…I thought that I'd get trampled over back there.I hate it when I get noticed a lot.It gets so annoying.But I still can't believe that I've been hated so much by a really cute guy whose name I don't even now!"

-Must be the way you schooled him back there.He must have had tons of skill to earn the title arcade prince in a nerdy arcade.-

"Hey,arcades aren't nerdy!I used to go to them all the time!"

-Oh,right.But how come he reacted so badly to you beating him,hm?-

"It's because guys have more pride inside of them than most girls.Plus,it was a double offense since I was a girl P"

-Alright!Give me five girl!-

"I'll look stupid giving myself a high-five!"

-Alright fine,but you owe me one later-

"Why do I hold such stupid conversations in my head AND with myself!"asd

Sakura fixed her hair as she neared her condo building.

"SighThis plan was ALMOST a success…I wish that guy wasn't there to ruin it though.I was almost revealed as a girl…pretending to be a boy.Wait till they find out that their prince is actually a princess.Especially one that models…They'll be all over me and trying to kiss me and ask me out…personally…I wanted _that_ boy to ask me out…"

She found herself surprised at what she said as she locked the door to her condo.

"Why would I ever want to go out with some teme like that!He was completely mean and…and…he almost ruined my perfect day…I wonder how he acts when he's in a good mood.He probably acts all snooty and rich.Hm…he might just be rich by the look of that car.Only really rich people can afford cars like that…"

Her mind traveled to other stupid subjects as she took a bath and changed into her pajamas.

Inner Sakura: shouldn't mother be calling to check up on me right about now?She said that she probably would.

Just then,her phone rang and she picked it up hastily.

"Hello dear,how are you?"

"I'm fine,mother…"

Inner Sakura: No,actually,I'm not.WHY'D YOU HAVE TO MAKE ME TAKE PICTURES FOR MAGAZINES!NOW I'M SO FAMOUS THAT I CAN'T EVEN PLAY IN AN ARCADE WITHOUT SOME PERSON NOTICING ME!

"Well,that's just peachy-keen dear.I'm sorry once again for making you stay there honey.I know that it's really hard for you and all.But I hope you have a good start at your new school."

"Thanks mom,are you busy right now?"

"No,dear,I'm not,That's why I decided to call you!You know that me and your father care about you!Speaking of your father…did he call you at all?"

"Hm?No mother,he didn't.Why?"

Inner Sakura: Silly Sakura,are you thinking about that pretty boy again?He is such a bakayaro!And why are you thinking about him while you're talking to your mother?Shame on you!

"…I thought so…maybe your father is still busy."

"You're not staying in the same place together?"

-Hmph…your mother doesn't even notice the absence of your mind!Maybe she just doesn't care!-

'Mother does care!'((Sakura hissing back at her inner self in her head))

"No dear,unfortunately not.Your father had to cover more conferences than I did,so he's probably on the other side of China by now."

"I see…"

-I think that all mother cares about is making money and not taking care of her daughter,which she should rightfully be doing.Why did she agree with father to have a child if she's always really busy.-

'SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP!MOTHER DOES CARE!LISTEN TO ME INNER SELF,THEY'RE ONLY DOING THIS TO PUT ME THROUGH SCHOOL AND ALL THAT SHIT!'

-If you say so,Sakura.Well,sister Sakura…-

'I'm not your sister,I AM you remember?'

-Hm…you're right…-

"Honey…are you okay?You're not talking much."

"Sorry mom.Just got distracted."

"Keep up your focus dear,you'll need it for when you start school,okay?"

"Yes mom."

"Alright,you better get to bed.It's getting pretty late."

"Okay,mom…"

"That's my dear,goodbye sweetie!"

"Bye,mother."

Sakura hung up the phone and started screaming into her pillow.

"BAKA BOY THAT WAS THE ARCADE PRINCE!"

-I see that you're still not done thinking of how cute he is.-

"Stupid inner self…you're never on my side…and I'm going to stop thinking of him…right…NOW!"

-I'm not supposed to be on your side.I'm always supposed to oppose against your bad actions or plans.That way,you will always make the right decision.-

"Really?"

-Chuh!No!-

"Thanks…a lot,inner self!"

-You're welcome-

Sakura uncomfortably rolled around in bed before she decided to shut off the lights.

"I just hope that I can at least get some damn sleep!"

Authour's note:

If you didn't know…

asdanime sweat drop


	3. Chapter 3

**_1ST PLACE ISN'T EXACTLY THE BEST_**

_**-CHAPTER THREE-**_

_**Reminiscent**_

"_BAKA BOY THAT WAS THE ARCADE PRINCE!"_

_-I see that you're still not done thinking of how cute he is.-_

"_Stupid inner self…you're never on my side…and I'm going to stop thinking of him…right…NOW!"_

_-I'm not supposed to be on your side.I'm always supposed to oppose against your bad actions or plans.That way,you will always make the right decision.-_

"_Really?"_

_-Chuh!No!-_

"_Thanks…a lot,inner self!"_

_-You're welcome-_

_Sakura uncomfortably rolled around in bed before she decided to shut off the lights._

"_I just hope that I can at least get some damn sleep!" _

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Before we begin….

a.s.d basically stands for anime sweat drop,you know those little drop-of-water kinda things that appear on the back of anime character's heads when there's an awkward moment or something like that going on

! LET'S START!

Sakura woke up the next day surprised as ever.She found something weird in one of the boxes filled with her clothes.Since she still didn't finish unpacking,there were a couple of boxes here and there in her living room.What she found in the box was an envelope containing a letter..

Inner Sakura: Wonder what this is…eh,Sakura?

"Yeah,I don't remember packing anything in any of my boxes."

The confused pink haired girl turned the envelope over and over in her hands,trying to remember if she had inserted this anywhere in her luggage or anything.She looked down at it again and looked at the back.Surprisingly,it was addressed to her from her father.

"Why would father want to give me a letter?Can't he just call me about it or something."

Sakura ripped the letter open and a couple of papers fell out.She picked them up curiously and carefully unfolded it.Sure enough,it was her father's handwriting on his favorite type of stationary.

Inner Sakura: What does it say?

"It says that he's sorry that he can't visit me since he's at conferences….and that he's happy that he forced me to get a job in modeling so that he and mom could teach me the value of money….it also says that he won't be able to call me since he's going to America for more business.I wonder why he's always busy.He was usually the one who would call me and make sure I'm okay."

-Really,huh?-

"Yeah,you should know,you…inner self…?"

-Well,you know that you're brain is basically like two different people,right?-

"That's why I always have to debate with myself?"

-Uh-huh!-

"I bet everyone would find that weird…"

Sakura sighed heavily.She always hated when people teased her for being different or because of her forehead.It always bothered her because when she was younger,kids whom she had known forever had started teasing her for many different reasons.Mainly just because she had a big forehead.But she knew that they just thought that Sakura would be some kind of snooty bitch when she grew up.

-What's wrong with you now?-

'_Nothing…nothing…'_

-No more talking out loud to yourself,huh?-

'_(sigh) no…'_

Tears suddenly fell down the now pale cheeks of the pink haired girl.It was painful to look back and remember her hate-filled memories.She would always think that she grew up alone,never able to settle down in one place.Sakura was never usually bothered by this,but now,she completely was.Now that she desperately needed someone there for her,no one was there.

-Hey,what's wrong with you?-

'_Nothing…just stay out of my head for once'_

-Chuh!You think that's easy?I basically am part of your head.I'm also basically part of you.There's no use in trying to shoo me out!-

'_Right…sorry about that.'_

Even if her thoughts sounded reassuring,she sure didn't feel like she was trying to convince herself that she was alright.

-Hey,cheer up,will ya?-

Not even her inner self could console her,because in reality,she was truly alone.

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It took Sakura quite a while to get a grip,but she eventually was able to fix breakfast for herself.After she ate,she got ready to go outside again.She decided not to dress up as a guy before the actual trip to the arcade since it was more of a hassle of actually trying to escape her own growing fan club of guys.It took her a while to just pick out her clothes since her inner self kept on telling her that certain things were 'too girly' or too 'boy-ish'.Her inner self finally shut up when Sakura had picked an outfit befitting for an average girl.It was a black miniskirt with a jacket over a tank top.

Inner Sakura: You sure do clean up well,Sakura.

"Thank you very much"

She grinned as she locked the door to her condo.

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Since she had just moved to this town,she felt it appealing to go shopping at the mall.When she arrived at the locally biggest mall,she got a bit excited.There were tons of stores filled with clothes and even more stores filled with video games.The mall even had an arcade too!

-Whoopeedoo…geekville-

'_Hey,you better shut up!'_

Sakura was arguing normally with herself again as she approached the arcade.Wherever she went.she would always have to go to an arcade to calm herself or just kick some baka teme's ass if he was bullying someone.

"I hope I don't run into that boy from yesterday here…"

And just as she had said it,she saw the raven haired boy there,completely indulged in a two-player shooting game,although his hair looked like a different shade of black.She decided not to provoke him here since he still didn't know that she was the one who kicked his ass.He thought that it was her 'brother' who wiped him out.She watched him playing the game from a distance.He had a look of complete focus on his face as he took out the targets.Even if he looked completely focused,he still missed a couple of them.Sakura was itching to get in there and show him how it was done,but tried not to.

'_He's gonna know that it was you yesterday…he's gonna know that it was you yesterday…oh hell!'_

Sakura yielded under the pressure and grabbed the unused gun from beside the boy.After Sakura had wrapped up the game by not missing a target,the boy smirked at her and said,"Look who it is...it's the new arcade prince!"

She looked over at the boy and gasped.It wasn't the raven haired boy from yesterday,it was the person who had bullied her.She remembered that they looked pretty similar since the time that she had seen both guys.

"Hm…what are you talking about?I've never been called an 'arcade prince'.

The stupid looking boy looked Sakura over and said,"Oh,my mistake miss.I thought you were some punk that beat me yesterday."

A large sweatdrop could be clearly seen at the back of her head as she thought.'This idiot doesn't even noticed that I look like the person that he bullied yesterday!Boy am I lucky right about now!'

The boy left her alone as she went around looking for games that she had interest in.She snuck around some more until she stopped dead in her tracks.She saw a group of boys bullying a little girl.They were laughing at her because she played arcade games,which was supposedly 'unlady like'.

'_What a bunch of bakayaro!'_

She got mad as she stormed toward the commontion.She felt sympathy for the little girl since she was in this situation uncountable times before,but there was no one there to help her out..

"HEY YOU!LEAVE THAT GIRL ALONE!"

They group of boys dispersed once they heard Sakura's voice.The little girl was still crying and Sakura knelt down so she didn't have to lean over to see the little girl.

"Are you okay?The boys are gone now."

The girl looked at Sakura as she smiled at her.

"Th-thank you."

"No problem."

Inner Sakura: This little girl looks surprisingly like us.She has the same emerald eyes and big forehead.Except her hair is a really different shade of pink.

'_Yeah,you're right…'_

Sakura ruffled the girl's hair a bit as she got up and headed home

'_That girl brought back some…painful memories'_

-She did?-

_tYeah,I thought you of all people would know.You are part of me!t_

-But it's memories like those that make me want to forget stuff that happened in the past.-

'_You're right,for once…'_

Sakura found that her eyes were dampening as she walked home,not caring if she played any games in the arcade or not.She checked her watch.It was only noon and she decided to spend the rest of her time just kicking back in her apartment unpacking.There was no point in her shopping for more clothes if she wasn't even finished unpacking any of her clothes.

-Smart move,Sakura.-

She grinned.

'_Thank you.'_


	4. Chapter 4

**_1ST PLACE ISN'T EXACTLY THE BEST_**

**_-CHAPTER FOUR--_**

_**The Renatch**_

_Sakura found that her eyes were dampening as she walked home,not caring if she played any games in the arcade or not.She checked her watch.It was only noon and she decided to spend the rest of her time just kicking back in her apartment unpacking.There was no point in her shopping for more clothes if she wasn't even finished unpacking any of her clothes._

_-Smart move,Sakura.-_

_She grinned._

'_Thank you.'_

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The walk home was pretty stressing for the pink haired girl.All day,she had been through things that brought back truly painful memories that she kept on trying to forget.She tried everything to cheer herself up,but to no avail.The least that she did was make the snide remarks from her childhood stick in her head,after it took so many years to erase them.

"I can't believe that I'm going to go to the arcade looking like this."

She said as she looked in the mirror of her bathroom.She looked like a mess.Her hair was ruffled up a bit and her eyes were kind of red and puffy.

-Look ,all you need to do is straighten up your hair and stop rubbing your eyes.The redness from crying usually doesn't stay for at least 10 minutes!-

"Yeah…you're right…"

Sakura hastily took a shower and blow dried her hair before any signs of frizz appeared.By that time,her eyes were back to normal and she was feeling better.

"I'm ready to kick that baka teme's ASS!"

-That's my girl!-

She decided to unpack some of her clothes so she could kill some time.She had already gone through 10 of the boxes before she found one that looked familiar.It probably wasn't one that she had loaded into the moving truck when she was helping,so her father and mother probably put it there.She opened it and found all of her old journals and diaries in it.

"This is starting to get interesting…"

She poured out the contents of the box and scooped up the latest updated journal in the pile.It was one that she had started in grade 9 and she had stopped writing in it when she had moved to Osaka.

"I think I remember who gave this to me.I think it was one of my old friends that was a guy…hm…"

She opened up the book to find tons of pictures of her and her friends just fooling around.At the back of the book,she saw one picture of her and some boy that she couldn't remember.He was wearing a cap which hid most of his very vibrant red hair.

"I can't remember who this person is…I think that he used to go to my old school.What was his name again?"

Sakura looked at the picture in hopes that it would spark a memory.Unfortunately,the red hair and broad smile didn't really give her any clues.

-Hey…isn't that Sabaku no Gaara?He was the one that you had a crush on until he moved in the middle of grade 9.-

"Yeah,you're right!Didn't he move to Osaka too?"

-Yup,at least I remember that he did-

"I had a crush on him since pre-k .I can't believe that we've been best friends for so long!"

-Yeah,but then what about Temari?I thought that she was your best friend!-

"She was,but she's all the way back in Hong Kong…((None of the Sand Siblings are related in this fic))"

She put the old journal away and cleared the rest of the boxes left in her living room.By the time she was done unpacking everything,it was already 4:40.

"I'm going to be late for the whole rematch thing!"

-I knew that you shouldn't have spent all your time ogling Gaara's old picture!-

"Shut up okay?I only remembered him right now and I needed to ponder some things!"

-Humph-

Her inner self felt content about her excuse since her thoughts were kept short.It took Sakura 10 minutes to get ready and leave her condo building in the direction of the arcade.

'_Why is that bakayaro even mad that I beat him and got that stupid 'arcade prince' name?I mean,it's just one stupid little title…but then,I'd be really pissed too if someone beat my sole redeeming feature!'_

-Nice little joke…NOW JUST CONCENTRATING ON BEATING THAT BAKA!-

'_Thanks so much for the encouragement…'_

She pushed open the doors of the arcade and could not see the slightest trace of the boy's raven hair.She looked throughout the arcade and found that not even the bully from last time was there.It seemed like it was practically empty,except for a bunch of older gamers in the corner of the arcade playing pool.

'_I doubt that he's going to show…_'

-No,ya think!-

'_Shhh….I seem him right there!'_

Apparently,the boy was not late,but exactly on time.He had the same emotionless face that he had last time and his eyes were even more colder than she had remembered.

'_GREAT!JUST GREAT!I completely forgot to warm up!'_

She made sure that ever single aspect of her disguise was in place as she approached him.Her hair was secure in a bun and her slouch was perfectly executed so that no guy would look at her chest.

"So,it looks like you actually showed,arcade prince…or rather,princess."

"Shut it!Look,I do have a sister,so just stop calling me a freakin girl!"

Sakura anxiously looked at the raven haired boy's face for signs of disbelief,but none of them showed.

Inner Sakura: he's giving me such a hard time already!

"Alright fine,only if you beat me in this game will I believe your stupid story."

Sakura nodded and he sent her in the direction of a shooting game.

"We'll play two player on that,and the person who wins gets to be the arcade prince.Also,the loser has to buy the winner a smoothie!"

"Fine."

Sakura nodded hesitantly and she accidentally let her thoughts slip out of her mouth.

"Why does this matter to you anyway?It's just about a stupid title!"

The boy looked at her and said,"I told you before,no one beats me at anything.So get that straight!"

Sakura nodded as they each pulled out one of the guns lying adjacent to each other at the target shooting game.They started out,yet again,with a tie.It kept up for a long time,neither of them talking or even breaking their concentration.Their points kept on rising to 100,200,300…until they reached 1000.by that time,yet another crowd had developed and they were cheering for either side.Most of them were cheering for the now reigning arcade prince,Sakura.But some of them were still cheering for the other boy.

'_God…these people know that I'm going to kick his ass and yet their still yelling for that other baka to win!'_

They had been playing for over an hour until the other boy had missed a target,then missed another.It seemed like for every 4 targets,he was missing one.Sakura started relaxing when she noticed that she was reaching 3000((the person who reaches 3000 first wins)) faster than he was.When she shot the last target and finally reached 3000,the raven haired boy sighed heavily.

"Looks like you won,but I'm not giving up!"

"…Lucky me…"

"Like I said,no one beats me!"

"Yeah,right."

Inner Sakura: Ha!I beat him again!

Sakura yawned and said to the obviously angry boy,"Since you're all pout-y and shit,you don't have to buy me that smoothie,okay?"

Inner Sakura: Hey,I might as well try and make friends with this guy or else this whole thing might happen again tomorrow…

The boy looked at her even more colder,"Don't pity me.I will buy you that smoothie!"

To her,the boy seemed a lot less mature when he was beaten,but at least he looked cute…She nodded and he kept his mouth shut when Sakura chugged down the smoothie,as thirsty as ever.After she wolfed down the smoothie,she turned to the raven haired boy and said,"You put up a really good fight.I'm pretty tired from all that concentrating and stuff…"

"Whatever…"

Inner Sakura: So…when he's not being beaten,he automatically adverts back to being cold and emotionless eh?How convenient for me…

Shee stayed sitting there as she ordered another smoothie.And surprisingly,the boy stayed there too.

Inner Sakura: I thought that he'd leave once he finished ordering me a smoothie…He's pretty weird (grin)

"What are you grinning about,huh?"

"Nothing."

"Well,just stop it,people will think that I'm actually talking to you."

"Oh,and you're not right now?"

The boy kept quiet and the only thing that could be heard was Sakura slurping her smoothie.

"Why are you still here?"

"I'm waiting for my girlfriend."

"Really?"

"Yeah,and don't slurp your smoothie so loud.It's so annoying."

"Whatever."

Inner Sakura: He has a girlfriend!

Sakura started to laugh at this thought as she finished up her smoothie and walked towards the exit,Before she left,the boy looked at her with narrowed eyes.

"Why the hell are you laughing."

"No reason."

She started walking and heard the boy mumble,'Crazy bitch' under his breath and Sakura fought the urge to beat him up.

'_Well,at least he didn't comment about my forehead!'_


	5. Chapter 5

**_1ST PLACE ISN'T EXACTLY THE BEST_**

**_-CHAPTER FIVE--_**

_**Uh…I'm sorry?**_

_Sakura started to laugh at this thought as she finished up her smoothie and walked towards the exit,Before she left,the boy looked at her with narrowed eyes._

"_Why the hell are you laughing."_

"_No reason."_

_She started walking and heard the boy mumble,'Crazy bitch' under his breath and Sakura fought the urge to beat him up._

'_Well,at least he didn't comment about my forehead!'_

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She had made it home by six and she had decided to go out to the mall to get more clothes.Since she had already unpacked her clothes and found that some of them didn't fit her,she pulled on her favorite pair of black jeans,a white t-shirt and her favorite jacket that she almost always wore when she went out anywhere.When she arrived at the mall that she visited earlier,she say the raven haired boy with a crowd of girls swarming over him.

"Hey…I wonder where his 'girlfriend' is…"

-Probably hiding.Who would want to be seen with that baka teme?-

'_Good point.'_

For some reason,Sakura felt compelled to go up to him and say hi,but fought back the urge.Then her cell phone rang and she answered it.It.was.Temari!

"Hi Temari!"

"Yeah,hi Sakura!"

Sakura started walking again,but she wasn't looking where she was going since she was looking for a pad and pen.

"That's nice Temari…"

"You think that getting a hole drilled into my kneecap was nice?"

"No…the thing about the…uh…other thing."

"Oh yeah,that?Yeah well,I was just…"

'_This girl talks a mile a minute!'_

"Look,Temari,I heard that Gaara lives in the area that I do now…do you know his cell number?"

"WHAT!HE DIDN'T TELL YOU HIS!You guys were like best friends since-"

"Pre-k.Yeah,I know.I gotta go quick,so you mind making it fast?"

"Yeah,no problem."

Sakura wrote down his number and bumped into someone as she was putting the slip of paper with the number on it away.

"Watch where you're going!"

"Ow…uh,gomen…"

Sakura looked up and saw the same boy that claimed that he would beat her in arcade games no matter what.

'_(asd)Oh boy,here we go again…no wait.I'm safe!I'm not wearing all those guy clothes!'_

The boy didn't look as happy as Sakura when he saw her face.He had a look of sheer annoyance on his face when she had knocked him down.

"Look,just because you're a girl doesn't give you privileges to just bump into anyone."His voice stayed as frosty as ever as his onyx eyes looked at her spitefully.He got up and didn't even bother to help Sakura.

"Yeah,thanks for helping a lady when she's fallen."

"What?You're not a lady,are you?"

Inner Sakura: You bastard!You better help me up!

Truthfully,in the boy's mind, he was thinking something like this - '_This girl looks exactly like that punk that beat me in the arcade.I guess that he wasn't lying when he said that he had a sister.'_

While in Sakura's head,she was thinking something like this - _'I think he's figured me out!He might just call my bluff about having a sister right here!'_

If Sakura was nervous,she didn't show it since she was too busy combing through the crowd of fangirls following the boy to try and find one that might be his girlfriend.But then he looked at her weirdly when she was looking around and still on the floor.

"What the hell are you looking for?"

Sakura looked at him through narrowed eyes and said,"Nothing."

It was pretty awkward during that moment where they were both looking at each other while Sakura was on the floor.It was pretty weird since she was waiting for him to offer her his hand,but he didn't.She acted on her own accord and pulled herself up.

"Thanks for helping me up."

"Yeah,whatever.It must have been hard to get up considering that your forehead must weigh twice as much as your body."

The second that he had insulted her,his fangirls started giggling and laughing.

"Shut up you jerk!"

-That's right!You go tell him off for laughing at us!-

Sakura stormed to the nearby arcade to try and calm down.When the boy saw her heading toward the arcade,he followed after her.If it was true that her brother wasn't lying about having a sister,he had to follow her and watch her play games in the arcade and observe her skill.He almost was completely in the arcade right behind her when she stopped and said,"What are you,a stalker now?"

The boy froze up and said,"Oh,I thought that you were my girlfriend!"

-What a lame excuse!-

He left right after she sat down at the nearest racing game.

"Baka teme!Trying to spy on me right in front of his girlfriend!"

-Have you ever thought that he doesn't have a girlfriend and that he was lying?-

'_What!Why would some jerk like that lie about having a girlfriend?'_

-To make your 'brother' jealous.-

'_Hm…maybe.Don't know why he would want to make me…I mean my 'brother' jealous by flaunting that he has a girlfriend'_

-Look,does any guy need a reason to flaunt that he has a girlfriend!-

'_Good point.'_

When Sakura was satisfied with playing games,she headed for a clothing store that had a sale on really cool jackets that she always wanted.

-Sakura,why do you always want some stupid jackets!-

"Because…now shut up!"

Then Sakura saw some of the girls that had been following the jerk and they were sneering at her.

"What the hell is their problem?"

They began laughing loudly when they began to advance on her.One of the girls went up to her and said,"Look,it's that bitch that _he_ was talking to.What a loner!I could hear her talking to herself from all the way over there!"

The other girl just sneered more as the girl kept on insulting Sakura.

"And _he_ was right!She does have a big-ass forehead!What a bitch!"

Sakura found this the right time to insult the other girl back.

"Bitch?Please!You're the bitch!Following that jerk around everywhere!I'm starting to think that you're that bastard's girlfriend since you're talking a lot of trash!"

The girl looked completely shocked,and she would look even more shocked after what Sakura would do to her next.Almost instantly,Sakura sucker-punched the unexpecting girl and turned on her friend with fire burning in her eyes.

"Do you want some of this!"

The girl ran away frightened while dragging her unconscious friend behind her.

-You beat up good,Sakura.-

'_I've had experience!' _

After Sakura had bought every article of clothing that she had wanted,she started the long walk home while carrying tons of bags filled to the brim with clothes and jewelry and a couple of string bags that she thought were positively 'cute'.

"How am I gonna walk home while carrying all these bags?They're getting pretty heavy!"

-Call a taxi…duh!-

This idea struck her as a stroke of genius as she pulled out her cell phone and called for a taxi.The taxi was taking quite a while to arrive,so she found this as the perfect opportunity to call Gaara.

"I just hope he has his cell phone with him!"

She dialed the numbers and hastily waited for someone to pick up.It was Gaara who picked up and she almost screamed with joy.

"Gaara!Is that you!"

"Uh…yeah.Who's this?"

"It's me,Sakura!Sakura Haruno!"

"Sakura?I-I-…I haven't seen you in a long time!"

"Yeah,well I heard that you moved to Osaka.I moved there too!"

"Really,where do you live?"

"Uh…do you know where the Uchiha condo's are located.Yeah,well,I live in the one near the highschool."

"You live in one of the Uchiha family-owned condo buildings!Aren't those really expensive to live in?"

"I model for fashion magazines,remember?My parents wanted me to learn how to pay for my own bills…stupid way to teach me though…"

"You know the highschool near there right?I go there for school,you're going to go there too,right?"

"Yeah…"

Sakura was laughing mentally since she had thought that she was late for school on a Saturday…how stupid.

"Gaara,I gotta go.The taxi I called is here.I'll see you tomorrow?"

"Yeah you will.But before you go.Before I moved,you know how you didn't show up when I left?That…was harsh."

Sakura didn't remember any of this.She didn't even remember Gaara telling her to meet him anywhere to say goodbye to him before he left.

"Gaara…?"

"…"

"What are you talking about?"

"…"

"Uh…I'm sorry?"

The taxi pulled up beside Sakura and she loaded her bags into the car.That was the first time that Gaara was ever mad at her.Ever.

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Author's note:

MUAHAHAHAHAHAHA!I didn't tell you who the 'raven haired boy's ' girlfriend is!But you'll find out who it is…next time.Or maybe the time after that.Oh well,review please


	6. Chapter 6

**_1ST PLACE ISN'T EXACTLY THE BEST_**

**_-CHAPTER SIX--_**

_**Uchiha Sasuke!**_

_Sakura didn't remember any of this.She didn't even remember Gaara telling her to meet him anywhere to say goodbye to him before he left._

"_Gaara…?"_

"…"

"_What are you talking about?"_

"…"

"_Uh…I'm sorry?"_

_The taxi pulled up beside Sakura and she loaded her bags into the car.That was the first time that Gaara was ever mad at her.Ever._

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Tons of thoughts were racing through the very confused pink haired girl's head.

'_Gaara actually told me to meet him somwhere?I think I would've remembered a crush's request to meet him before he left the country!'_

-Don't worry your little head,it's alright.You'll see him tomorrow,unless you plan on skipping.-

'_Hey,don't even try to persuade me.It's not going to work,I have to see Gaara,no questions asked!'_

-Sabaku no Gaara,huh?I wonder if he has a brother…-

'_Why?You're still part of me no matter how hard I wish that it wasn't true.'_

-Right…right.But that doesn't mean that I can't persuade you to go out with both.-

'_I'm just sickened by the way you think,inner self.'_

-Hey,I get it from you.-

"SHUT UP!"

Sakura looked at the bus driver hesitantly when she noticed she had just yelled out a random word in reality and she saw a weird look on his face.

"Excuse me miss?"

"Yes?"

"I didn't say anything."

"Right…sorry"

A tinge of red spread across Sakura's face as they neared her condo building.She couldn't wait to kick back in a warm bath.She gathered her bags and paid the driver as she made her way to her condo while having yet another heated discussion with herself.

"Look,the Uchiha condo buildings are the best hands down!"

-No,they are not.Remember that condo building in Hong Kong?-

"Which one?The one that father said he'd buy for me if I wanted an extra job as a condo owner?"

-Yeah,that one.That one was the best!-

"What are you talking about!They use too many scented candles and too many stars rent those condos.I just hate being near them.They're all so snooty and stuff.Especially the models!"

-You're one to talk!You are a model!-

"Don't throw that at my face!Mother and father wanted me to pay for myself so I needed a job!"

-So what?It's not like you didn't have the option of turning down the offers that those magazines were giving you and go get a job at a fast food restaurant!-

"Then how the hell would I be able to rent a room here!"

-I give up!-

"Good!"

She rewarded her victory over …uh…herself with a nice warm bath and got dressed into her pajamas.By the time she had climbed into bed,her inner self had decided to have another argument with her.

-Gaara was mad at you because he wanted you to follow directions that he didn't even tell you!What a JERK!-

"Gaara didn't mean it,so I forgive him."

-Or maybe you forgive him since you're so in love with him!-

"Shut up okay?Gaara's in the past…or he was since I'm going to see him tomorrow."

-Gaara's a jerk and that is that.He never even called you when he settled down in Osaka!He didn't even give you his cell phone number!-

"Give it a rest!He gave me his number!"

-Yeah…uh-huh…that's why you were hassling your best friend,Temari for it?-

"I'm going to bed,so could you shut it,please?"

-Whatever…-

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Sakura's alarm rang and she woke up immediately.

"It's a new day!"

A big smile formed on her face at the thought of starting out at a new school without worrying about that immature jerk she had met on countless occasions.She fixed breakfast in hopes that she would at least make friends with a lot of people in her class.

"I just hope that I can talk to Gaara too (grin)."

-What makes you think that he'll wanna talk to you-

"Because we've been buddies since pre-k."

-Hm…let's see if that smile lasts long.-

"We will!"

Sakura finished up breakfast,brushed her teeth and pulled on her uniform.Before she knew it,she was walking to school,book bag in hand.

"This day seems so perfect!"

-How much do you want to bet that it won't turn out that great?-

"Firstly,if you did win,how would I give you the money?And secondly,okay,sure."

-Heh…whatever.-

She rushed past the gates of her new highschool and opened the door leading to her classroom,room 10-A.When Sakura walked in,a few heads turned and a whole group of guys swarmed over her.

"Gomen…uh…I have to get to the…teacher."

Inner Sakura: Get out of my way you baka!I need to find Gaara!

She stopped dead in her tracks when a very bubbly blonde boy approached her,sticking out his hand.

"Hi,I'm Naruto."

Sakura nodded and shook his hand.

"Konnichiwa Naruto-kun.When does class start?"

Before he could reply,a blonde girl butted in.

"HI!I'm Ino!"

"Hi…Ino."

"You're that fashion model,right?"

"Yup."

Inner Sakura: (asd)that's the only name people know me by these days…

"Hey,I was talking to her,Ino!"

The blonde boy pushed Ino out of the way,but Ino pushed back,

"Naruto!Just because we're friends doesn't mean you get to make friends with more people than me!"

"Please,Ino-chan,Naruto-kun,stop fighting."

"SHUT UP ROCK LEE!"

The boy who they had screamed at in unison seemed to shrink back into the corner that he came from.Sakura started to get uncomfortable and went to go sit beside a brown haired girl with her hair tied up in buns who was playing darts with a boy with long,black,silky hair.

They both smiled at Sakura as she neared them.

"Hi,I'm-"

"Haruno Sakura.Yeah,I've seen you in a couple of my mother's fashion magazines.Plus,everyone seems to be talking about you a lot."

The girl with her hair tied up in buns had interrupted and smiled at her.

"I'm TenTen,and this is Neji."

Sakura bowed and Neji began to speak,

"I see that you've met Ino-chan and Naruto-kun.They're really good friends,really."

"Yeah,right.You mind if I play darts with you?"

"Go ahead."

TenTen tossed Sakura a couple of darts and let her take a shot at it.Sakura focused all of her concentration on hitting the target and threw the dart.It landed dead center.

"Wow,you're pretty good."

TenTen's smile broadened as she said,"I haven't met anyone who could hit the target on the first try."

Inner Sakura: Is that an insult because she expected so less of me or a compliment?

"Thanks…I guess."

They resumed the game and Sakura ended up tying with TenTen,which surprised Ino-chan and Naruto-kun,who had eventually stopped bickering and watched Sakura and TenTen face off in darts.

"Wow you're really-"

Someone sharply clearing their throat had interrupted them.They all looked up and saw their professor up at the front,about to start the lesson.

"Everyone,take your proper seats!"

Everyone that she had met had bowed and said,"Hai,Kakashi-sama!"

They all took their seats and left Sakura standing quite alone in the corner a the back of the room.She looked around for an empty seat at one of the tables,but the teacher stopped her before she sat down.

"Everyone,we have a new student joining us this year.Her name is Haruno Sakura."

Most of the guys clapped and some of the girls smiled at her.But the person whom she had knocked out at the mall yesterday was there,and she did not look happy.She was whispering to the girl next to her,who was the same girl she

had seen at the mall yesterday who half-dragged her friend out of the store.

"Rika!Stop whispering in class!"

The girl stopped whispering and continued to look at Sakura spitefully.The teacher began to speak again,

"Sakura,you may sit at the empty table near the back of the room."

She nodded and sat in her seat.

'_I wonder who my seat-mate is.Maybe it's Gaara!'_

-Give it up,hon.Gaara's in the front of the class,do you see him?-

'_He is in this class?I didn't see him at all!'_

Sakura continued to look for him but her view was blocked by a couple of tall people in front of her.She gave up when Kakashi-sama started writing some equations on the board.When the all equations were on the board,he told them to work on them till their free period.While Sakura was copying the questions down,the door had opened and everyone's head turned to the direction of the door.Sakura,however,was still looking up a the front as she had noticed a mistake in one of the questions.

"Ah…Mr.Uchiha Sasuke.We are more than pleased to have you in our presence.Please take you seat."

But the boy stood in the doorway and both him and Sakura opened their mouths to say something,

"There's something wrong with question 12.It's not solvable. "

They both looked at each other once they heard both of their voices.

"You…"

Sakura narrowed her eyes at the same raven haired boy that she had been in the presence of for the whole weekend.

Sasuke gave her the same cold look.

"Why are you in the seat beside mine?"

Sakura looked beside her and mentally gasped.

Inner Sakura: DAMN IT TO HELL!

"I see that you two have met.Now,Sasuke,please take your seat."

Sasuke pulled out the seat beside Sakura's and gave her an annoyed look.

"Just don't bug me.Your brother does that enough."

Almost instantly,the boy fell asleep and most of the girls started staring at him like he was the most interesting thing in the world.

'_Oh my god…his last name is Uchiha,right?'_

-Yeah,why?-

'_Because he owns the condo building that I live in!He can automatically get me kicked out!'_

-No he can not!Just go focus on your questions!-

Sakura sighed and got back to work,but although the raven haired boy appeared to be sleeping,he really wasn't.To his surprise,he had been observing Sakura ever since he had first entered the room.Her vibrant pink hair had caught his gaze almost instantly.The color pink was so annoying to him,and this cute girl,who was the sister of his worst enemy, sitting beside him made pink seem more annoying to him.


	7. Chapter 7

**_1ST PLACE ISN'T EXACTLY THE BEST_**

**_-CHAPTER SEVEN-_**

_**Competition**_

_Sakura sighed and got back to work,but although the raven haired boy appeared to be sleeping,he really wasn't.To his surprise,he had been observing Sakura ever since he had first entered the room.Her vibrant pink hair had caught his gaze almost instantly.The color pink was so annoying to him,and this cute girl,who was the sister of his worst enemy, sitting beside him made pink seem more annoying to him._

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Their first period finally passed and Sakura felt relieved.The Uchiha boy was sleeping the whole time,but had managed to finish the questions in under 2 minutes.

"H-how did you do that?"

Sasuke smirked,but kept quiet._'How can this girl be amazed by a genius answering a bunch of easy questions?She looked like a nerd when I first saw here.'_

"Hey…I'm talking to you,you-"

Sakura was interrupted by Kakashi announcing the end of the period.Everyone got up from their seats to talk to each other since the next period was a free one.

"Hey!Sakura-chan!How's about you come sit with us?"

Sakura turned around and say Naruto waving at her to join the group of people she had first met.They were all in a corner of the room.

"Yeah,I'll be right there,Naruto-kun."

Sakura put her books back into her bag and headed to the lone corner of the room,trying to avoid Rika and the rest of the girls who had started making their way towards Sasuke's table.

"What's up with all the girls always following Sasuke?"

Ino looked up at Sakura and said,"Oh,well.It's the same case with you and your little fan club of boys."

"What do you mean?He's a fashion model for women's clothing too?"

Visible sweat drops had formed on the back of her new friends' heads after they had heard her reply.

"No!He's rich and famous too!"

Sakura turned to the person who had answered her question.It was a boy who had a piercing in each ear and they had all called him 'genius boy'.

Inner Sakura: Since when is it okay for a guy to correct a lady!

"Oh yeah!His family owns the Uchiha condo buildings,right?I live in the one near the school!"

Everyone's jaws dropped when Sakura had finished announcing that she lived in one of the most expensive condo buildings that ever existed.

"What?What's wrong guys?"

The one known as the 'genius boy' spoke," If we all put our money together,that still wouldn't even be enough to pay the rent there for a month!"

-Oh yeah,that's right.They're all country folk.-

'_Shut up!My friends aren't country folk!'_

-So they're your friends now?-

'_Yes.'_

"Yeah…well.You guys should come over somtime.The have a pool on one floor and-"

"Wow!A pool!"

"Yeah,Naruto-kun a pool."

Ino hit Naruto on the head.

"Everything amazes you!I'd shut up if I were you!"

"Well,luckily,he's not you,Ino-san"

The voice who had just spoken had come from behind Sakura.

"Oh,hi Gaara.What took you so long?"

'_Gaara!Sabaku no Gaara!'_

Sakura smiled as she turned around and before the person in front of her knew it,they were being half-hugged and half-strangled by Sakura.

"Sa-Sakura?"

"Huh?"

"You're hugging Hinata-chan."

Sakura opened her eyes and saw that she indeed,was not hugging her precious Gaara-kun.Instead,she was hugging a girl who was blushing like crazy.

"Uh…gomen."

Sakura backed off and hugged the real Gaara when he came into view.To her,he was taller than usual.He was a full head taller than she was,but still had the same vibrant red hair.

"Yeah…Sakura.Do you mind backing off a bit?"

"I…I'm sorry."

Sakura looked away blushing a bit and started a conversation with Rock Lee,who was not even paying attention to what she was talking about,but rather her.

"…and that's why my parents wanted me to become a fashion model."

"Wow…your beautiful!"

"Rock Lee-san?Are you okay?"

"As long as you are…"

Inner Sakura: Is this guy an idiot or what? (asd)

"Yeah…I'll see you later."

Sakura walked away and headed to the hallway,There,she saw Gaara,who was very alone in the hallway also.She used this as an opportunity to find out what went wrong with her conversation with him yesterday,

"Gaara-kun?"

Gaara turned around,probably expecting to see someone like Hinata there,but instead,he saw the one and only Sakura.

"Oh…it's you."

Inner Sakura: I would've beat you up if you weren't my best friend!What a JERK!

"Look,I'm sorry and junk,so can we just be on par now?"

Gaara turned smiled a bit and hugged her.Sakura half-expected him to yell in her face or something,but a hug was a okay.It was really quiet for a while until Gaara spoke,

"Uh…I've missed you,Sakura-chan."

"I missed you too."

"No…not in that way.I mean…well."

He let go of her and Sakura almost burst out laughing.The great and almighty Gaara…being shy?It sure was a sight for sore eyes.Sakura decided to say something so Gaara could save face.

"Yeah,well.I missed you in that way too."

Gaara laughed and Sakura almost strangled him.

"It's just like you to mess up the mood!"

"Yeah,okay,okay.I'm sorry.Just don't beat me up like you did when we were kids.Agreed?"

"Agreed."

Before Sakura knew it,Gaara was kissing her,and she was kissing Gaara back.

'_What the hell am I doing?Gaara's my best friend!...meh…Temari would be really excited to hear about this,so whatever.'_

Shivers went up Sakura's spine as she felt a peaceful bliss race through her body.

'_Hee hee.Gaars-kun's kissing me…and we're alone..in the hallway…'_

Although Sakura thought that they were alone,they weren't.Right in their classroom doorway was Sasuke,looking furious.He didn't know why he was so mad though,since nothing concerning him was happening._'What the hell is wrong with me?I'm so mad because the redhead is kissing the baka's sister!'_

Sakura and Gaara broke off the kiss when they saw Sasuke enter the hallway.

Sasuke gave them his well-known annoyed look as he began to mouth off.

"Can someone go to the washroom without throwing up?"

"Yeah,as long as you don't look in the on Gaara,the air just got colder in here."

Sasuke felt slapped in the face.His urge to be in Gaara's position at that time had earned him a full-out insult from the pink haired girl that he had secretly wished had liked him.That thought shocked him,to put it mildly.

"Whatever…I bet that she's not even worth it!"

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They're next class was Phys Ed and everyone was getting ready in the change rooms.

**Girl's Change Room…**

"How come we didn't see you for the rest of free period,Sakura-chan?"

"Uh…because…"

Sakura anxiously searched for an excuse that Ino,Hinata and TenTen would buy.

"Because?"

"Because I had to go to the washroom and then I beat up this girl for saying that my forehead was big!"

Everyone just laughed and said,"That's my girl!" or "Was she bleeding?" or "Was she anyone you knew?"

Sakura laughed at the prospect of beating Rika again after school,but then she was at a new school and she didn't exactly want to get expelled on her first day.

**Guy's Change Room…**

"Hey you!GAARA!"

Sasuke had a plan that might've worked out.He was planning to make sure that Sakura wouldn't look at Gaara with those dreamy eyes or kiss him at all anymore.

"What do you want Sasuke-teme?"

"Come over here for a sec."

Gaara followed Sasuke to an empty section of the change room and panicked a bit when Sasuke cornered him.

"What the hell do you want,bastard Uchiha?"

"You know that girl…Sakura?"

"What about her?"

"Stay away from her.

"And what if I don't?"

Sasuke pushed Gaara into the wall and pinned him there.

"Or else I'll tell her what's going on with you and Hinata.How would you like that?"

"You wouldn't…"

Sasuke narrowed his eyes at him.

"I would."

**In the gym…**

Sakura looked around to try and find Gaara,but he was nowhere to be seen.

'_Must be in the change room.'_

"Sakura-chan!Watch out!"

Sakura looked up and a basketball hit her square in the face.

"Ow…"

She rubbed a part of her head where there was a bump was forming as all of her friends ran to her side.

"Are you hurt?"

"Are you bleeding?"

"Do you need a doctor?"

Ino hit Naruto on the head again.

"You idiot,she only needs ice."

"Oh!Oh!I wanna taker her!Can I take her Kakashi-sama!"

"I will,you baka dobe."

"Alright,then you take her,Sasuke."

'_Sa..SASUKE?'_

Sakura got up and looked at her nonchalant teacher.

"Kakashi-sama…I can go by myself."

"Nonsense!What if you fall and hurt yourself more?I'll get fired for sure!"

"Is that all you care about?"

"Hm…yeah.Now go take Sasuke with you to the office and get some ice."

'_Just my luck!'_

When they were alone in the hallway,Sakura turned on him.

"Why the hell would you want to help me?I was expecting Gaara-kun to-"

"To what?Help you?You're kidding,right!"

"Don't interrupt me when-"

"When you're speaking?Yeah,whatever."

Inner Sakura: Whatever happened to being kind to a lady?

"Ow!"

The pain in Sakura's head increased when the office came into view.

"Are you okay?"

Sasuke's face looked like one of actual concern,which troubled the pink haired girl already in pain.

"Why are you so concerned for?"

"I-I'm not!"

Sakura looked at him suspiciously and noticed him blushing.

"Then why are you blushing?"

"…"

"Hey,I'm talking to-"

"We're at the office!"

Sasuke held the door open for Sakura as she asked the secretary for ice.

'_Stupid jerk.Didn't even answer my question!'_

-I think he's blushing because he likes somooooooooone.-

'_Really,who?'_

-Man…nevermind!-

'_I think you may be talking about his girlfriend.I still didn't figure out who she was.'_

-Why don't you ask him?-

'_I will!'_

-Wait!Don't!-

'_Shh!I'm gonna ask him now!'_

Sakura sat down in one of the empty seats far away from the secretary's desk after she had handed Sakura the ice.Sasuke sat down beside her and started looking annoyed again.

"Hey,Sasuke-san?"

"What do you want?"

"Who'd you say was your girlfriend?"

Sasuke's expression changed from an annoyed look to one of complete shock.

"How did you know that I had a girlfriend?Unless you're.."

"I'm what?"

Inner Sakura: Dammit!He might know that I was the one in the arcade!

"That you're that stupid bastard in the arcade who beat me at anythin for the first time in my life!"

"What are you talking about…?"

-Wait!When he was following you,didn't he say that he thought that you were his girlfriend?Use that against him!-

"I'm talking about you being you're bro-"

"What?My brother?Of course not!Didn't you say yesterday that you had a girlfriend when you were personally stalking me?"

Sasuke thought a bit then said,"Yeah,you're right."

Then the bell rang to signal that their period was over.

"We'd better get back to class."

Sasuke nodded and said,"You go on ahead,I'll meet you there."

"…okay,sure."

When Sakura left,Sasuke went back to the boy's change room and mumbled to himself,"Almost forgot to untie Gaara.Whoops."

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Author's note…

I personally kinda didn't like this chapter because I did it kind of last minute-y.But that doesn't give you people a reason to not like it!Review after reading please…and I might not be able to update in a couple of days.Now,I just said I might not,so it's a pretty high chance that I will,okay!

-shihna-


	8. Chapter 8

**_1ST PLACE ISN'T EXACTLY THE BEST_**

**_-CHAPTER EIGHT-_**

**_Sasuke's being shy!_**

_Then the bell rang to signal that their period was over._

"_We'd better get back to class."_

_Sasuke nodded and said,"You go on ahead,I'll meet you there."_

"…_okay,sure."_

_When Sakura left,Sasuke went back to the boy's change room and mumbled to himself,"Almost forgot to untie Gaara.Whoops."_

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"Sakura,you must compose posture!Sasuke's not on to you,you're safe!"

Sakura tried to convince herself that Sasuke was not going to find out that she had out-skilled the owner of her newly furnished condo.She had just emerged from the change room to retrieve her bag and to change out of her gym uniform.When she was walking silently in the hallway,she half-expected Sasuke to jump out and scare her,which got her confused.

"Why am I thinking of that bakayaro so much all of a sudden?"

-I think you like him.-

"I do not!I-I guess that's it's just natural for people to think about the person that has threatened to kill them!"

-Yeah…right.-

Sakura had almost reached the hallway of her classroom when she heard Gaara and Sasuke behind her.

"Sakura-chan!Wait up!"

"Shut up Gaara!"

"Why don't you?"

Sakura turned around and saw that both guys were running down the hallway to try and reach Sakura first.If you were standing behind the very unfortunate pink haired girl,you could clearly note the large sweat drop at the back of her head.

"Gaara-kun?Sasuke?"

"Yeah,Sakura-chan?"

"What do you want,big forehead?"

"Don't call her forehead!She's sensitive."

Sakura decided to leave the two guys standing there to try and 'work it out'.Like that ever worked!

'_Hey,inner self?'_

-Yes?-

'_Why are there two cute guys trying to fight over me?'_

-Actually,I just think that Sasuke wants that cake that he tried to steal from you during class.-

'…_thanks…I guess.' _

Sakura had managed to slip away unnoticed until Sasuke punched Gaara in the face and caught up with her.

"Hey,Sakura?"

"Yeah?"

"I hate you!"

Sakura flashed the very annoyed-looking Uchiha a fake smile.

"Th-thanks!Thar's all I wanted to hear from you!"

Gaara finally caught up to Sakura and said,"Is that baka teme bugging you?"

"Pretty much."

"I'll take him out for you!"

"Don't,.I don't want to be forced to help someone to the office."

Sakura slid open the door to their classroom and stood back as Gaara and Sasuke were trying to beat up each other.It was only until their teacher noticed that they were back that he stopped them.

"Gaara!Sasuke!Sit down in your seats or else you'll have to go to the principal!"

"Hai,Sensei!"

"Yeah,whatever Kakashi."

They both took their seats and Sasuke didn't even glance in Sakura's direction as he sat down.

"Sasuke-kun?"

"Don't call me that."

"Alright…fine.Sasuke?"

"What?"

"I need to ask you something."

"What the hell do you want?"

"Who is your girlfriend?"

"Why do you want to know so badly?"

"Please,tell me."

Inner Sakura: I'm trying to be as polite as I can…BUT IF THIS GUY DOESN'T TELL ME WHO SHE IS,I'LL HAVE TO BEAT HIM UP!

"Why are you so nice all of a sudden?"

"Please,may I know?"

"NO!"

"What was that Sasuke?"

Both Sakura and Sasuke looked up to see the teacher looking down at them with 'I'm completely pissed off' written all over his face.

"Ah…gomen Kakashi-sama."

Sakura bowed her head as she apologized.

Inner Sakura: Hey,I don't want to get in trouble on my first day!IT WAS ALL THAT BASTARD'S FAULT!

"What about you,Sasuke?"

"Yeah,yeah.I'm sorry too."

The teacher went back to bugging people to straighten out their desks and to finish their work.

"Sasuke!"

"..."

"Sasuke!Please,talk to me!"

"…"

"Fine,it looks like I'll have to ask Gaara!"

Sakura now knew his weak spot - Gaara overpowering him in anything.Heck,Sasuke just hated people overpowering him in general.(Note the time when Sakura had beaten him in the arcade)

"Okay,okay!I'll tell you,if you must know so badly…It's Rika."

"The girl that I knocked out the other day?"

"You were the on who knocked her out!"

"Yeah,well…."

"…"

"(ahem)"

"…but it's not like I actually like her…she threatened to force the teacher to make her sit beside me."

Inner Sakura: Is he trying to imply that he's single?Ew!AS if I'd ever go out with him!

"But isn't being her boyfriend much more worse?"

"Just shut up now,okay?"

Sakura found this as the perfect time to brood.The teacher looked like he was sleeping,so she could get away scott free from not doing anything.

'_Hm…there's Gaara…but then there's these weird feelings with Sasuke.'_

-I think that you should pick Gaara.-

'_Why?'_

-Oh…are you actually thinking of going out with that jerk now?-

'…_NO!'_

-Then pick Gaara.-

'_But I think that Gaara wouldn't want to go out with me…'_

-Uh-huh…that's why he kissed you?-

'_Shh!Not so loud!'_

-Who will hear us!Look,just go out with Gaara and laugh in that bastard's face when he sees you together!-

'_But…Sasuke doesn't even like me!'_

Sakura glanced over at the now-sleeping Sasuke.

-Why are you even questioning your attraction towards Gaara?I thought you liked him!-

'Yeah,you're right…he's a bit cuter too ((notice that the author is now rolling on the floor laughing)).'

Sakura blushed a bit as she had finally figured out her decision.

"Why are you blushing so much?"

Sakura looked beside her to see that Sasuke was now fully awake and looking at her extremely weirdly.

"I was doing no such thing!"

"And why were you giggling?"

"Because…you'd look funny in a hat!"

-Sakura…what the hell did you just blurt out?-

'_Uh…the first thing that came to my mind?'_

"Yeah…um,Sakura…"

Sasuke went back into his 'I'm-so-shy' mode and scratched the back of his head.

"Yes?"

"You know Gaara?He and Hinata are…they…"

'_Hey,it's as if he was reading my mind!He must be psycho!"_

-You mean psychic!-

'_Sorry…wasn't thinking there…heh…'_

"They…are what,Sasuke…-kun?"

"Well…Hinata…is…yeah…"

"Hm…?"

Then the bell rang again and Kakashi jumped up in his chair.

"Class,dismissed!I'll see you after lunch!"

Sakura saw Naruto waving at her to come join the rest of her friends so they could go to the cafeteria.

"Sorry Sasuke-kun.I gotta go!"

"Wait!I didn't tell-"

"I can ask you about it later!Okay?"

"Dammit!"

Sakura joined up with her friends as they were asking her if she was okay or not.

"I'm okay guys,really…"

Ino looked at her with pity in her eyes and said,"Are you sure,Sakura-chan?"

"Yeah,pretty much."

Naruto looked at the area of Sakura's head where the bump had been.

"Sakura-chan…there's no more bumps on your head or anything?"

"No,Naruto-kun.I'm fine."

"That's good!"

"Yeah…"

Sakura hung back from the group as the made their way to the cafeteria.

"I wonder where Gaara is…"

Almost as if it were on cue,Gaara tapped her shoulder from behind.

"Oh!There you are Gaara!"

"Yeah,I've been looking for you."

Sakura looked up at his face and noticed that he looked rather flushed and he was blushing a lot.

"Gaara-kun?"

"Look..Sakura-chan…I like you…and you like me…so."

Before Gaara completed his sentence,Sakura gave him a kiss and said,"Yeah,I'd love to be your girlfriend."

Gaara was left in a daze as Sakura made her way to the cafeteria where her friends were probably wondering where she was.

"Gaara is my boyfriend…Gaara is my boyfriend!"

Sakura was skipping her way down the hall happily,but her words fell upon the wrong ears.

"WHAT!"

Sasuke almost flipped out of his skin.

"Gaara…her…boyfriend!"


	9. Chapter 9

**_1ST PLACE ISN'T EXACTLY THE BEST_**

**_-CHAPTER NINE-_**

…_**you're carrying his child!**_

_Gaara was left in a daze as Sakura made her way to the cafeteria where her friends were probably wondering where she was._

"_Gaara is my boyfriend…Gaara is my boyfriend!"_

_Sakura was skipping her way down the hall happily,but her words fell upon the wrong ears._

"_WHAT!"_

_Sasuke almost flipped out of his skin._

"_Gaara…her…boyfriend!"_

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"Hey,Sakura-chan!Where were you,eh?"

"Eh…nowhere,Naruto-kun!"

Inner Sakura: The last thing that I'd do was let it slip that me and Gaara-kun were together.

"Why do you look all flushed,Sakura-chan?"

"No reason,Neji-kun."

Inner Sakura: I guess that no one's buying it…that's bad news for me!

"Hey,leave her alone.I bet that she's been talking to her Gaara-kun!"

"INO-CHAN!Where the hell did you get that idea!"

"Oh,I just saw you and him kissing and you skipping down the hall yelling 'Gaara is my boyfriend' over and over again."

Inner Sakura: So much for the element of surprise!

"OOOOOOOHHHHHHHH!Sakura-chan…you don't have to hide that from me!"

Naruto was acting more stupid as ever when everyone decided that this was the time to bombard her with questions of 'why in the hallway' or 'why not in a more private place?' While Sakura was being bothered by her newly found female friends,Sasuke made his way to the cafeteria.

"What the hell did I say to that baka?I strictly told him not to mess around with Sakura!But does he listen?NO!I'm going to have to tell Sakura his little secret now!"

Everyone in the cafeteria looked at Sasuke weird as he dragged Sakura to an unoccupied table near the back of the cafeteria.

"Hey,Sasuke-kun?What are you doing?"

"Just shut up and hear me out!"

Inner Sakura: What the hell does he want!I already gave up and gave him that cake!

They both sat down and Sakura noticed Sasuke's famous pissed off look on his handsome features.

"I couldn't tell you before in class,so I'll tell you now."

"Oh,you're still worried about that thing in class?Couldn't this wait till later?I was going to go join Gaara-kun at his table."

Sakura waved at Gaara and Sasuke grabbed Sakura's arm as she stood up.

"Sakura!You have to know this now!"

Sakura was pissed off by this point and slapped Sasuke across the face.

"Look,Uchiha,I like you as a friend and all…but you're getting annoying!"

Everyone was staring at Sakura as she began to yell at Sasuke.Most of the girls began to give her dirty looks;and now Rika was approaching their table.

"Hey,big forehead!Leave my boyfriend alone!"

Sakura turned toward Rika and instantly slapped her.

"You better shut up 'cause I'm not finished!"

-Hey,Sakura!Calm down,will ya?'

'_NO!'_

"All I wanted to do was sit beside my boyfriend and suddenly,it's a federal crime!I'm sick of you,Sasuke and your devil-may-care attitude!"

There was a moment of silence,but then Sasuke started to speak.

"Alright,Sakura-chan.I'm sorry I pissed you off…."

Sakura looked over at the raven haired boy and saw a look of pure embarrassment stretched all over his face.

"See,was it that hard to apologize?"

"Yes!"

Sakura took in a deep breath,but then paused.

"Did you just call me 'Sakura-chan'?"

"Yeah,so what?"

Sasuke looked away even more embarrassed as she walked over to Gaara's table with pride.

"That's my girl!"

"What did you say,Gaara!"

Sakura and Gaara looked up and saw Hinata,who looked furious.

"Hi Hinata-chan!"

"Sakura,back off!Gaara's my boyfriend!"

"Wh-what!"

Inner Sakura: what happened to the nice,shy Hinata!

Sakura was now in complete shock.She turned to Gaara and glared at him.

"SABAKU NO GAARA!We haven't even been together for an hour and you're cheating on me?"

"What are you talking about!I'm carrying that bastard's child!"((Author is now laughing like hell))

"Ch-ch…CHILD!"

Inner Sakura: Maybe that's what Sasuke was trying to tell me…I feel horrible.

"Gaara,I'd usually say that you don't deserve this,but you do!"

Sakura drew back her fist and punched Gaara in the face,which resulted in a bleeding nose.

"Sakura!I'm sorry!"

Before Gaara could run after her,Sakura made her way to the girl's washroom with tears in her eyes.

**In the Girl's washroom…**

"Stupid Gaara!Stupid child!STUPID INNER SELF!"

Sakura's life was in total anarchy,She had fallen for Gaara,and he had betrayed her,and now Sasuke hated her.

"There goes my life…down the tubes."

"Hey…are you in there?"

She heard a knock at the door and had recognized the voice.

"Sa-Sasuke-kun?"

"Yeah…"

'_What does he want to do now?Laugh at me?'_

-Just open the door.He means well.-

'_Fine,but it's your fault if Rika's there to laugh at us too.'_

Sakura wiped away the fresh batch of tears rolling down her cheeks and tried to check her hair in the now mutilated bathroom mirrors.

'_Guess I shouldn't have broken the mirrors…' _

-Thank you captain obvious!-

She opened the door and there was Sasuke.His usual expression of annoyance was not present.Instead, it was a look of sheer pity.

"Sakura-chan,are you all right?"

"…"

Sakura looked down at her shoes.She felt so confused.

'_There's Gaara to break my heart,and then there's Sasuke to pick up the pieces.But…I don't know what to do…'_

"Hey,Sakura-chan!"

"Huh?Oh,sorry Sasuke-kun..."

"Do you want to go walk with me outside?"

Sakura looked up again and saw the anxiety on Sasuke's face.

"O-okay…"

The never-smiled-before Uchiha looked at her and on a smile played on his lips.'Sakura is finally over that stupid Gaara!'

Sakura's voice broke through his thoughts.

"Hey,are you coming,Sasuke-kun?"

Sakura was already waiting for him near the school's exit and he ran over to her.

"Yeah,yeah…I'm coming."

**Outside on the school grounds…**

They were walking silently near the bleachers near the football field.Sakura looked miserable,but Sasuke looked like he was busting at the seams with joy.

"Sakura-chan?"

"Yeah?"

"I told you so!"

Sakura looked at him with and evil look on her face.

"Shut up…"

The Uchiha boy could obviously tell that he had pissed off the most care-free girl he had ever known.That was a bad sign.

"Sakura-chan?"

"What is it?"

"Are you okay?"

Sakura stopped walking and looked at her enemy in the eye.

Inner Sakura: Of course I'm not okay you twit!

Sakura faked a smile and fought back tears.

"…Yeah…"

The only thing going through Sasuke's mind was - 'Why the hell is Sakura looking at me weirdly for?Actually…she looks pretty cute (smirk).'

"Look,Sakura.It's okay if you want to cry...uh…I can tell you want to.I promise I won't laugh!"

"Why are you being so nice?"

"Uh…because…"

'_What the hell is that Uchiha boy thinking?'_

-Heck,just go ahead and cry.I know you're still broken up after that whole Gaara incident!Gaara's a bastard!I can't believe that you wanted to choose him!-

'_Haha,inner self.Very funny!'_

Before she knew it,Sakura was fully crying and Sasuke was…hugging her?

"Sa…Sasuke-kun?"

"What?"

'_He's using his annoyed voice again,I better watch what I say…'_

"…thanks."

"You owe me one,okay?I'd prefer that other piece of cake that you hid from me."

"Fiiiine…."

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Author's note…

I gotta admit,half-way through,I was just fooling around with the script and all that.I didn't even get the idea of Hinata carrying Gaara's child until I watched a tv show with a plot similar to this chapter.Anyway,please review!

-shihna-


	10. Chapter 10

**_1ST PLACE ISN'T EXACTLY THE BEST_**

**_-CHAPTER TEN-_**

_**PSYCH!**_

_Before she knew it,Sakura was fully crying and Sasuke was…hugging her?_

"_Sa…Sasuke-kun?"_

"_What?"_

'_He's using his annoyed voice again,I better watch what I say…'_

"…_thanks."_

"_You owe me one,okay?I'd prefer that other piece of cake that you hid from me."_

"_Fiiiine…."_

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Sakura and Sasuke seemed to be completely oblivious to what was happening around them.Almost everyone on campus was watching them in their warm embrace while Sakura was crying her eyes out and Sasuke was just patting her on the back and stroking her hair while trying to comfort her.Then Ino and company finally saw them outside.

"What the hell is that jerk doing to Sakura-chan!"

"Naruto!SHUT UP!Some people wanna hear!"

Every female surrounding Naruto gave him a punch to the head as they stood back and watched.

"I don't think that this is right…"

"Baka Nara!I know what is right and this is it!"

"Ino-chan…"

"Yes?"

"I hate you!"

TenTen almost knocked out all of them,

"SHHHH!"

**Back to Sakura and Sasuke…**

Sasuke let go of Sakura once she had stopped crying,he looked at her in the eye and did nothing else but stare.

"Uh…Sasuke-kun?"

-This guy is getting to be kind of freaky.-

'_You're right.Do you think that we should run away?'_

-I don't know!-

'…'

-Sakura!-

Sakura was staring at Sasuke with interest as she thought out her options.

'_Hm…do you think that he would forgive us if we ran away laughing at him?'_

-Nope…no chance.-

'_Then I guess that we'll be standing here doing nothing for a while.'_

But before Sakura's statement could be carried out,Sasuke began to lean in towards her with that empty yet pitiful look fixated upon his face.

-Oh my GOD!He's gonna kiss us!What the fuck are we going to do!-

'_I don't know…I DON'T KNOW!'_

Now,she could feel his breath tickling her now pale skin.

-Sakura…he's gonna kiss us…DO SOMETHING!-

'_I'm thinking!I'm thinking!'_

-Well…THINK FASTER DAMMIT!-

Sasuke's face were so close to hers that she panicked…So she did the only thing that had come to her mind….she punched him square in the face ((LMFAO!)).Sasuke fell to the ground covering his face.

"Sasuke-kun!What the hell were you doing!"

-Uh…Sakura?-

'_Yup?'_

-We're dead.-

'_Thank you captain obvious!'_

Sasuke looked even more pissed than she had seen him before as he sat up on the ground.

"I DON'T KNOW WHAT I WAS DOING!SO…DON'T ASK EVER AGAIN!"

"Okaay…?"

Sakura held out her hand to help him up as she began rethinking what had just happened in her head.

**Where Sakura's friends are…**

Everyone had been holding their breath as they had seen Sasuke leaning in to steal a kiss from Sakura.But they all burst out laughing when Sakura punched Sasuke right in the face.

"That's our Sakura-chan!"

TenTen was laughing as hard as Naruto and Ino.

"HAHAHAHAHA!That Sasuke-teme!He deserved that!"

"Naruto,shhh!"

"They're starting to talk again!"

…

"Yeah…so,are you okay,Sasuke-kun?"

Sasuke took Sakura's outstretched hand and brushed himself off as he stood up.

"I am.But don't think that I'll forget this!"

That was what came out of his mouth.What he was really thinking was,'I TRY TO KISS A CUTE GIRL AND I GET A FUCKING PUNCH TO THE FACE!WHAT THE HELL HAS THE WORLD COME TO!'

"I don't expect you to forget (smirk)."

It was quiet for a while until Sasuke decided to make up for his bold actions.

"Do you want to go to the arcade later?"

'_Damn…he still might be trying to make me confess that I'm my brother…better say no…'_

Sakura looked at Sasuke's face that was yet again,filled with hope.

"I'm sorry Sasuke-kun.Maybe tomorrow?"

Sasuke's face now became emotionless again,except for a hint of sadness that Sakura could see mixed in with his facial expression.

"Yeah,whatever."

The lunch bell rang and they both became silent for a while.

'_I can't take it!Someone has to say SOMETHING!'_

Before Sasuke could react,Sakura grabbed his hand and dragged him back to the school.

"We'll be late Sasuke-kun!Come on!We'll go back to class together!"

Inner Sakura: Me holding your hand just has to cheer you up!

And to Sakura's surprise,it did,because when they walked into the class late and holding hands in the doorway,Rika was about to yell at Sakura,and Sasuke had defended her.

"Sa…Sasuke-kun?Why are you defending that stupid pink haired bitch!"

"Just leave her alone…"

Kakashi didn't even complain about them being late because he had heard about what happened in the cafeteria ((that's really surprising because teachers don't give a hoot about what happens in the caf)).Sasuke and Sakura sat down at their table and to Sakura's surprise,Sasuke didn't let go of her hand.

"Ahem…"

"What,forehead?"

'_So,he's back to being mean,is he?'_

"My…my hand…"

"Oh..right."

Sasuke blushed a bit and let go of Sakura's hand.

-Does that prove to you that he likes you?-

'_No,it doesn't.Plus,he has a girlfriend…'_

-Yeah,and he doesn't care about her!Did you see how he defended you?-

'_Hey,he knew what happened to me in the cafeteria,he should defend me!'_

-Yeah,whatever.I just know that you like him!-

'_(blush)Sh-shu…SHUT UP!'_

"Eh…Sakura-chan?"

Sakura looked over to Sasuke.

"Yes,Sasuke-kun?"

"You owe me that cake still!"

"Uh..gomen.I forgot."

Sakura reached into her bag and retrieved the piece of cake.But before she could hand it over to him,he grabbed her arm to stop her.

"Actually…I don't want it."

"Huh?I thought that you loved extorting stuff off of me!"

"I do…but I love you more."

'_What the hell!'_

Sakura looked over at Sasuke with a blush on her face.It was silent until Sasuke grinned and grabbed the cake form her and yelled,"Psych!"

"(asd)SASUKE!"

"Hey,you should've seen the look on your face!"

'_I can't believe that I actually like this jerk!'_

-AHA!You fully admitted that you liked him!-

'_SHUT UP!'_


	11. Chapter 11

**_1ST PLACE ISN'T EXACTLY THE BEST_**

**_-CHAPTER ELEVEN-_**

**_Childhood similarities!_**

_Sakura looked over at Sasuke with a blush on her face.It was silent until Sasuke grinned and grabbed the cake form her and yelled,"Psych!"_

"_(asd)SASUKE!"_

"_Hey,you should've seen the look on your face!"_

'_I can't believe that I actually like this jerk!'_

_-AHA!You fully admitted that you liked him!-_

'_SHUT UP!'_

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**Before we begin…**

I've been too busy to actually read my reviews…so I decided to check them out today and reply to a couple…

InuyashaObsessed101: Yeah,I know that everyone's getting so ooc,so I'll try to keep it on track,But remember,some aspects of their personalities that I made up make the coupling interesting.

Little wolf blossom: There will be more of Sakura's 'brother' kicking ass in this chapter,so read to your heart's content ((tee hee)):

**!Let's start the story!...**

The rest of the day slipped past quickly,but it was still awkward between the two seatmates.Most of the time,sasuke was sleeping and didn't even glance in her direction.But Sakura was also too busy brooding to notice the sleeping lump sitting beside her.

'_He's so mean!'_

-I know…so why do you like him again?-

'_I'm not telling!Not here where everyone can see me blushing and stuff!'_

-It's almost the end of the day,so you just go on and tell me!-

'…'

-Come oooooooooon.-

'_Shut it!Kakashi-sama's gonna dismiss us!'_

The teacher announced that their last period was over.Sakura packed her bag and was about to leave until she saw the sleeping Sasuke,who would probably get a detention for sleeping in class.

'_Should I wake him up?'_

-No.Just leave that jerk there.He deserves a detention!-

'_Actually…I have an idea!I guess that I can go to the arcade today!'_

-I see…you're quite devious,aren't you?-

'_Haruno Sakura scores again!'_

Sakura shook the sleeping Uchiha and he almost chewed her out.

"Couldn't you see that I was sleeping!"

"Yeah,but it's the end of class!"

Sasuke looked around dumbfounded.

"Whatever."

Sakura left him alone to pack his bag and started the walk home.

'_Hey,inner self?'_

-Yup?-

'_What do you think would happen if Sasuke-kun found out that I was actually my brother?'_

-I think that he would suddenly,deeply despise you more and torture you more with insults and the such.-

'_So I guess telling him is out of the question?'_

-Sure is!-

Sakura's train of thought was soon disrupted by a blonde haired boy running up to her.

"Hey,Sakura-chan!'

"Hi Naruto-kun."

"A girl shouldn't be walking alone by herself!"

Naruto flashed her a smile and a feeling of happiness washed over her.

"Are you offering to walk me home?"

"Well,yeah…if you don't want me to-"

"No,it's okay,you can walk with me."

-Oh,so now you're cheating on 'Sasuke-kun' with 'Naruto-kun'?-

'_Don't talk to me with that tone of voice!And me and Sasuke were never togetherYOU GOT THAT?'_

-Yeah,yeah…-

Sakura's walk with Naruto was very entertaining.Naruto would ramble on about ramen and other stuff and Sakura would laugh at his jokes and just listen.Then Sakura's condo building came into view.

"This is my stop,Naruto-kun."

"Oh alright,I'll see you tomorrow!Unless…you want to go to the arcade later?"

-What the hell is with guys and arcades?Haven't they ever heard of real dates?-

'_Personally,I like arcades,so why don't you!'_

-Whatever…-

"Sorry Naruto-kun.I have a couple of errands to run,I might see you there if I get a chance,okay?"

"Yeah,that's fine."

Naruto walked off in the direction to his house and Sakura made her way to her condo.

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-Do you think that it was a smart idea to tell Naruto to go to the arcade anyway?I mean,he would probably spread through the school that you have a brother,and almost every girl in school knows that the fashion model,Haruno Sakura doesn't have a brother!-

"Just chill out!Naruto probably wouldn't notice me anyway!"

-You mean that he's too stupid to notice that your 'brother' is really you?-

"HEY!He is not stupid.He just…has trouble in a couple of subjects in school!"

-'Kay…whatever.-

"You're sounding more and more like Sasuke-kun lately."

-Who cares!-

"See?Right there!Sasuke-kun says that most of the time!"

-While we're on the subject…-

"Come on!Let's go!I"m ready already!"

-But…-

"No time for talking:

Sakura had yet again,decided to dress up as her 'brother' to vent out all her anger on that stupid Uchiha at the arcade.

-Fine…let's go then…-

**At the arcade… **

"That Haruno guy better show up!I'm totally focused on winning back my title!Now my brother can't mock me anymore."

Sasuke was sitting at the bar,trying to look around to see if Sakura's brother would suddenly show up.He sighed and decided to give up since he was there ever since the end of school.Then miraculously,there was the emerald eyed boy who had beaten him twice and who resembled his pink-haired seatmate.

"Hey,you!"

Sakura turned her head to see the Uchiha pointing at her and motioning her to come over.

"What the hell does he want now?"

Sakura sighed and headed on the direction of the raven haired boy.Sakura sat in one of the chairs at the arcade's bar and ordered a smoothie.

"How about a rematch?"

"Man…another one?I already kicked your ass twice!"

"Just accept my rematch!"

"…What's the catch?"

"(sigh)If I win,you have to go out with your sister.But if you win,I have to let me go out with your sister?"

'_D-D…does he really like me?'_

"Why the hell would you want to go out with her?"

"No reason.Just accept already!"

"Fine…I accept."

-Are you going to let him win or lose?-

'_I want to keep the title to flaunt it in his face…and to-'_

-Go out with him?-

'_Yeah.'_

-Just do whatever you want.-

'_I'll do just that!'_

They both agreed upon facing against each other on a racing game.They both sat down in one of the adjacent seats and swiped their cards.The game started out with them both tied.

"I'm not going to lose again,Haruno."

"Why?You already lost the other times!"

Inner Sakura: What's so different about him now?

Then Sasuke,used his sole remaining turbo booster and took the lead.

'_Damn…Sakura.You can't use your only turbo booster to get into lead.You might need it later…'_

Although Sakura was starting to lag behind,she was tempted to use it to get tied with Sasuke.

-Just use it on the last lap!He won't expect it there!-

'_Good idea…'_

The last lap was very close.Sakura was still behind and the finish line was in view.

'_I have to use it now…'_

Sakura used the turbo booster and caught Sasuke off guard as she instantly took first and crossed the finish line first.Sakura jumped up from her seat.

"YEAH!I beat you…again!"

Sasuke slunk back in his seat.

"AHA!I beat you and now I don't have to go out with my sister and you have to!"

Sakura was so stuck in the pleasure of winning that she hadn't noticed what Sasuke had.Her cap had fallen off and her pink hair was escaping the loosely tied bun.

Sasuke looked at the celebrating pink haired girl,who was now totally busted.

"…Forehead?"

"Huh?"

She saw the bangs of her pink hair falling over her eyes as she stopped jumping around.

'_DAMMIT!Where'd my cap go!'_

Sasuke's normal cold look had turned to one of rage.

"I knew it!It was you all along!"

"Uh…gomen Sasuke-kun?"

"You think that this is funny!I was ridiculed by everyone that I knew because of you!I've had enough teasing when I was little!"

Sakura's brain only registered the words 'I've had enough teasing when I was little.'

'_He…he's just like me.'_

Sasuke started to storm off until Sakura gave him a hug from behind ((reminds me of a time in the real Naruto story line)).

Sasuke started talking to her without turning around.

"What the hell do you want?Do you want to make fun of me more?You're just like my brother."

Sasuke's regular monotone voice cut deep into Sakura's skin like knives.

"Sasuke-kun,I'm sorry."

"No you're not."

"I am.I swear it."

Tears streamed down Sakura's eyes and she did nothing to stop them.

"I really like you,Sasuke-kun.But I couldn't stand it if you…were mad at me."

"You're so annoying."

Sasuke broke free of Sakura's embrace and walked off.Sakura didn't even bother to run after him,but only a single sentence escaped her lips.

"You're…you're just like me…"


	12. Chapter 12

**_1ST PLACE ISN'T EXACTLY THE BEST_**

**_-CHAPTER TWELVE-_**

**_My last shred of hope…gone_**

"_Sasuke-kun,I'm sorry."_

"_No you're not."_

"_I am.I swear it."_

_Tears streamed down Sakura's eyes and she did nothing to stop them._

"_I really like you,Sasuke-kun.But I couldn't stand it if you…were mad at me."_

"_You're so annoying."_

_Sasuke broke free of Sakura's embrace and walked off.Sakura didn't even bother to run after him,but only a single sentence escaped her lips._

"_You're…you're just like me…"_

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Sakura wiped away her tears and entered the arcade again.Most of the gamers who hadn't been paying attention to her before were looking at her with a keen interest as she made her way through the crowd of gamers.Among them,she could hear whispers of 'So,do we need a new arcade prince?' and 'I guess the arcade prince is a princess now.'Sakura almost burst into tears when she saw Naruto looking at her through bewildered eyes.Sakura sat herself down beside him at the bar.

"Eh?Sakura-chan?Why'd you dress up as a guy just to beat Sasuke?"

Sakura sighed heavily.Truthfully,she didn't even know the answer herself.

"I guess that it started out as just avoiding the guys that would stalk me.But now,I just think that I needed to beat him in his only known redeeming feature to impress him."

Naruto patted her on the back,

"Don't worry,Sakura-chan.Things'll turn out…I guess."

Sakura wiped away a new batch of tears and tried to force a smile.

"Hey,I'll buy you a soda."

"Thanks,Naruto-kun…"

Naruto got up from his seat and asked the bartender to give them two sodas while Sakura pulled off the sweater and oversized pants so she could move around easily in her normal clothes ((she wears clothes underneath,so don't get the idea that she's running around buck-naked.))She couldn't help but bury her face in the clothes as she took in the scent.

'_Dammit…still smells like Sasuke-kun…'_

-Hey,cheer up.At least the scent washes out when you put it in the washing machine.Or maybe we could burn it…-

'_No,I'm not burning anything.Too busy brooding.'_

-Alright,you go ahead and be a lazy bitch!-

'_I will…'_

Naruto came back with their drinks and took another stab at cheering her up.

"Hey,Sakura-chan!Look at me!"

"Yes,that's a very entertaining funny face,Naruto-kun."

Naruto looked even more puzzled at Sakura's sarcastic expression.

"Why are you being sarcastic at a time like this?"

"No reason."

"Then let's play a game!Why go to an arcade without playing any games,huh?"

"Yeah sure."

'_Why would I want to play arcade games a time like this?I"m so stupid…'_

They both played ddr and Sakura suddenly found herself happy again.It was like Naruto wasn't the necessary pick-me-up,but the thing that had caused Sakura and Sasuke to part ways was just about the right cure.After their 10th round,Sakura checked her watch,It was almost quarter to 9.She looked over at Naruto,who was looking dumbfounded that a girl had beaten him, and smiled.

"Thanks for meeting me here,Naruto-kun.I'll see you tomorrow?"

"Yeah,I'll head back home after I beat this kid.Do you mind walking home alone?"

"No.Bye."

As Sakura was walking home,she noticed Sasuke near the door of his family-owned condo bulding.His car was even parked right in front of the building.He was leaning on the door with his nonchalant demeanor that annoyed her so much.As she neared the door,he didn't even act like he had noticed her and just walked on past her as she pulled the door open.

"Jerk."

"Big forehead girl."

'_How the hell did he hear me when he's all the way over there!'_

-Don't know and don't care.Just go to sleep!I'm tired,aren't you?-

'_Yeah,I am.' _

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Sakura sat up in her bed in the middle of the night.

"Why was he at the condo building?"

-Well.he owns it,so I don't think that he needs a reason to be loitering right in front of the 'no loitering allowed' sign.-

"That's right,but for some reason,he was meeting someone there."

-Whatever!Just go to sleep!-

"Fine…"

Sakura's head hit the pillow and she instantly fell asleep,

**The next morning…**

The pink haired girl sat up in bed and yawned.

"I better get ready for school."

-I thought that you wouldn't want to go to school after what happened yesterday.-

"Yeah,well,I shouldn't let some gut-less jerk ruin my studies!"

-That's my girl!-

Sakura put on her uniform and reached the school in record time.It should've been record time since she beat her fanboy club there.

"Whew…I thought that I'd never lose them!"

As Sakura caught her breath,TenTen and Ino approached her.

"Hey!Sakura-chan!"

Sakura looked up and saw her friends

"What is it?"

"Sasuke has a new girlfriend and she claims that she knows you!"

"WHAT!"

Sakura ran in the direction that TenTen and Ino had pointed out to her.

'_I wonder who it is,don't you?'_

-What kind of bitch that Sasuke picks up can know us!-

Sakura stopped dead in her tracks as she fought to the middle of Sasuke's fanclub of girls.There was Sasuke with a smirk on his face…and his arm was around some girl who's face was covered by a big hood.

"Sasuke-kun!"

Sasuke looked in Sakura's direction and laughed.

"So I see that you heard about my new girlfriend.It seems that she's an old friend of yours."

"Who the hell could it be!"

"Sakura nee-chan?"

"TEMARI!"

True enough,her best friend from Hong Kong was right in front of her and Sasuke's arm was wrapped around her waist.

"Yeah,it's me!I met Sasuke-kun while I was waiting for you in front of your condo.He said that you guys were really good friends."

Sakura glared at Sasuke with rage.

"Yeah,we're the best of buddies."

Temari must've been taking happy pills because she didn't even notice the increasing tension between her boyfriend and her best friend.The bell rang within minutes and Sakura rushed inside the classroom,but hesitated as she took the set beside Sasuke's.

"I hate you."

Sakura felt a tear stream down her face but wiped it away hurriedly.

"Th-that's nice Sasuke-kun."

"Don't call me that anymore."

"Whatever."

Her seatmate had appeared to be even more pissed off with her ever since yesterday.

'_Do you think that he heard the part about me liking him yesterday?'_

-I hope not.-

'Yeah…me too.'

Everyone's attention adverted to their teacher,who was about to introduce their new student.

"Class,this is Temari.Apparently,she's friends with our little fashion model."

Some of the guys wolf whistled at Sakura as she turned a deep red.

"Temari,why don't you take a seat beside Sasuke?"

"But,sir!I'm sitting beside Sasuke!"

Kakashi looked up at the pink haired girl.

"Hm…that's what it looks like...Sakura,you'll have to sit beside Naruto for now."

Sakura's jaw dropped.

'_How could Kakashi-sama move me!How will I ever get Sasuke-kun to forgive me now!"_

Sakura picked up her bag sadly and looked over at Sasuke.His regular cold face was now housing a very wide grin.

"Finally,I get a seatmate who isn't so annoying!"

Sakura slapped Sasuke before she walked over to Naruto's table.

-He so deserved that.-

'_Oh hell yeah!'_

"Hey!Sakura-chan!"

"Hi,Naruto-kun!"

Sakura pretended to act even more ecstatic as she took her seat beside the blonde haired boy.

"Alright,class!We'll begin with the usual solving of equations!"

As the teacher turned his back on the class to write on the board,Sakura couldn't help herself from looking over at the stupid Uchiha's table.He and Temari were staring at each other intimately and Sasuke almost caught her staring at him.

"Hey!Sakura-chan!What are you looking at?"

"Nothing much…"

Sakura tried to concentrate on anything but Temari and Sasuke,but her attempts were rendered useless.No matter how much she tried,her gaze would automatically turn to Temari…who was basically eating Sasuke's face by now.

'_(sigh)I'm so stupid!Why do I want something that I can't have?"_

-Because,my dear,you're just like that!-

'_But…I'm never usually like this!It's just in your imagination.'_

-Oh?It is?So that's why Sasuke loving you is in my imagination too?-

'…_shut up…'_

-Will do!-

Their first period passed and Sakura hung back at her table as everyone got up from their seats.

"…what's wrong with me?"

"A lot!"

Sakura turned around and saw Sasuke with his arm around Temari.

"Hey,onee-chan.You wanna play darts with us?"

Sakura hesitated at accepting Temari's invitation,but decided that she shouldn't let Sasuke ruin Temari's visit.

"Alright,fine.Who am I playing against?"

"My sweet Sasuke-kun!"

Inner Sakura: Oh hell!Make me feel worse why don't you!

Sasuke threw half of the darts to Sakura without saying a single word or even glancing at her.

'_Boy…does this guy hold a grudge or what?'_

Sakura started out getting her darts right in the middle,while Sasuke started out with less luck.His darts were scattered all over the board,but Temari still beamed with pride at Sakura.

"That's it,Sakura-chan!You can beat him!"

"Temari?"

"Yeah,Sakura-chan?"

"Root for your own boyfriend.It looks like he needs it more."

Sakura looked over at Sasuke and glared at him as he looked at her with his well known 'I'm so annoyed' look.

"You're so annoying."

"So what?At least I'm not sooooolosing."

"Shut up!"

"Why don't you!"

"Because I'm not so annoying!"

"Yeah,but you are so monotone-ish!I mean like,who wants to hear someone talk in the same voice all the time?"

Sasuke grinned even more widely at her.

"At least my forehead isn't as big as yours.Well,I'll give you credit since it is an attempt to cover up your slut-like nature."

Sakura snapped.She hated being ridiculed for the size of her forehead or being called a slut.What she hated the most was being called both at the same time.Sakura threw the last dart as she turned around and sped out into the hallway.The dart had hit the center of the dart board.

"Sakura-chan!"

"Just leave her alone Temari-ko…she won anyway."

Sasuke's head: Yeah…she already won the game…and my affection…what!What the hell am I saying!I have Temari-ko…so who cares about big forehead!


	13. Chapter 13

**_1ST PLACE ISN'T EXACTLY THE BEST_**

**_-CHAPTER THIRTEEN-_**

_**Temari's threat and curiosity towards the suspicious Sasuke!**_

_Sakura snapped.She hated being ridiculed for the size of her forehead or being called a slut.What she hated the most was being called both at the same time.Sakura threw the last dart as she turned around and sped out into the hallway.The dart had hit the center of the dart board._

"_Sakura-chan!"_

"_Just leave her alone Temari-ko…she won anyway."_

_Sasuke's head: Yeah…she already won the game…and my affection…what!What the hell am I saying!I have Temari-ko…so who cares about big forehead!_

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Sakura found herself under a Sakura tree on her school grounds.She recognized it as the tree that she and Sasuke where under when Sasuke tried to kiss her.

"I'm such a fool.I should've let him kiss me…and then punch him."

-No actually,you shouldn't have.-

"Why?"

-Because now,you can save your first 'boyfriend kiss' for a guy that you want to share it with.-

Sakura smiled to herself.

"I've kissed Gaara,remember?Well…I'm not including him anymore.But,it's funny,you know?I have these hordes of guys after me,and I haven't even had my first 'boyfriend kiss' yet."

"No,it's not funny."

Sakura automatically knew who it was without turning around to look at the person.

"Go away,baka teme.I don't need you're company."

"Fine,then I'll go talk to Temari-ko!"

'_Stupid Sasuke!'_

"Then go.I don't need anyone's pity.Much less yours."

Sakura got up from under the tree but Sasuke stayed.

"What do you want,Uchiha?You've already heard my deepest darkest secrets…and I don't have any cake today."

"No,it's not that."

"Then what the hell is it?"

"Uh…nevermind."

"I thought so."

Sakura finally turned around to look at Sasuke and saw that his face still had that cold look on it,but by the looks of his eyes,there was something bugging him.

'_It's amazing how I can easily read him like a book.Even now…'_

Sakura started walking away but bumped into someone.She fell to the ground and rubbed the spot on her back that had hit the hard earth.

"Uh…gomen?Ow!"

"What are you doing with my Sasuke-kun?"

Sakura looked up and expected to see Rika.But instead,saw her best friend.

"T-Temari?"

"What!"

Sakura didn't really want to get on bad terms with her best friend,so she tried to get back inside the school.But Temari stopped her.

"Where do you think you're going!"

"Going inside…"

"No you're not!Thanks to you,my Sasuke-kun is all sad!"

"No I'm not Temari!"

Sakura looked over at Sasuke,who was still looking like something was eating at him.

"Yes,you are.And there's no reason to hide it from this loser!"

Inner Sakura: What the hell is wrong with Temari now?She was all peachy keen before!

"Loser?"

"Yes,you are a loser!"

Inner Sakura: (sigh)Why does she have to act bitchy at a time like this!

While Temari started yelling at everything in sight,Sakura drew back her fist and punched Temari.She almost fell flat on her back but Sasuke had caught her.Teamri started smiling at Sasuke and started kissing him for such a 'heroic act'.Then she turned back to Sakura.

"YOU!"

"No,my name's not 'you'.It's Sa-ku-ra."

"UGH!Just stay away from Sasuke-kun!"

"Whatever,bitch."

Inner Sakura: Damn…I'm sounding more and more like Sasuke!

Sakura entered the classroom and took her seat next to her blonde seatmate as the lesson started.This was automatically 'brooding time' for the pink haired girl.

'_Hm…so Sasuke's actually troubled because of me.How good is that!'_

-Very.Now,how are we going to turn it against him?-

'_I think that we should challenge him to an arcade game and then just laugh at him when he loses.'_

-So,we're being evil now,eh?-

'_(sigh)I don't know what's wrong with me.So you better enjoy it for now.'_

-Okay…how about we get Temari first?-

'_Actually,I don't feel like it anymore.So leave me alone,okay?'_

-Okay…fine.-

Sakura started taking notes from the teacher until there was a knock at the door.Kakashi opened it and a student gave him a note.

"Er…excuse me class.I have some important business to attend to.Please remain seated."

Right after the teacher closed to the door behind him,everyone got up form their seats.Sasuke took this as another stab at getting Sakura to talk to him.He walked over to her table and found that Sakura wasn't there.She was in the usual corner where her and her friends were all the time.Sasuke squinted a bit to see who she was holding hands with.He took a step forward and saw that her hand was intertwined with Nara Shikamaru's.((I know…Shikamaru and Sakura are such a weird pairing.))

**Where Sakura and her friends are talking…**

"I can't believe that you and Shikamaru are going out!"

Sakura smiled at Ino.

"Yeah,well…we are now."

Naruto nudged Shikamaru.

"Shikamaru my friend,you have struck gold!"

"Naruto!"

TenTen socked Naruto and they got back to talking.

"Hm…I thought that it would be you and Sakura,Naruto."

"Really,TenTen-chan?"

"Yeah,really!"

"Well,I thought that it would be you and Neji!"

Naruto smiled mischievously at TenTen and Neji,who were seated beside each other.

"Naruto?"

"Yeah,Neji?"

"We are together you baka!"

Naruto scratched the back of his head.

"Really?"

"Of course you dobe!"

Every single person within their little group looked at Sasuke,who had just interrupted their conversation.Sakura was the first to talk.

"What do you want,Uchiha?"

"You're not going to call me Sasuke-kun anymore,are you?"

"Why should I?You told me not to call you that anymore!"

Sasuke paused to think for a bit,then replied.

"Yeah…I did.But anyway,Sakura?"

"What?"

"I hate you!"

"Is that the way you try to impress a lady?Well,I'm not impressed!"

Sasuke's head: Really?I thought that she loved it when I said that I hated her.Whatever…

"Me hating you isn't supposed to be flattery anyway!"

"Do you see my flattered?"

"No!And who would want to flatter you?"

"Uh…you did,remember?When you started being nice to me on that day?"

"What day?The day when Gaara rightfully picked you up then dumped you?"

"No…the day that you tried to kiss me,but then you got denied!"

Every girl that was interested in Sasuke was listening in on the conversation and they came up with a big shock when they heard of what Sasuke had tried to do.Especially Temari.

Sasuke on the other hand felt slapped on the face.

"You…promised that you wouldn't mention that again!"

"I only keep promises for my friends!"

"..."

Sasuke walked away defeated and Sasuke's fanclub looked at him with pity.They were all gathering around him and patting him on the back as they gave Sakura dirty looks.

"Yeah Sakura!"

"Way to show him who's the boss!"

"I wish that you would've been less harsh on him."

"Ino-chan,just because you like him,doesn't mean that I'll be really nice to him."

"Fine!"

Kakashi walked in and everyone sat back in their seats.But before he could start the lesson again,it was lunch.Just as fast as the students sat down,they had left out the door.Except for Sakura.She was packing up her books and highly expected Sasuke to try and talk to her again,but found that he was nowhere in sight.

"Oh good.He must be in the cafeteria already,At least he won't be here to hassle me!"

**In the caf…**

The pink haired girl grabbed her lunch tray and sat down at an empty table.She had refused to sit with her friends since she had to test something out.She had to see if Sasuke would still try to talk to her or not.It was a little exam that she had thought would prove if Sasuke had liked her or not.

Sasuke was making his way to the cafeteria when the evil voice in his head started to speak up.

-It's her emerald eyes,am I right?-

'_Hn.'_

-Or is it the way she kicks your ass at video games?-

'_Hn.'_

-Come on!You know you like her!-

'_Do not.'_

-Then how come you tried to kiss her and you were thinking of giving her that stupid rose that's still in your bag?-

'_I can't believe that I'm thinking of beating up myself over a girl!'_

-…-

'_Silence suits my anti-social self well…'_

Then,he saw Sakura sitting alone at a table.

'_Might as well go sit with her.It's the only seat available anyway.'_

Sasuke sat down at Sakura's table uninvited.

"Sasuke?"

Sasuke took note of the absence of his usual name extension that he was christened with when Sakura first met him.He looked up at her and saw that she seemed her usual self.

"I-"

"You hate me?Yeah,I know."

"No.What I'm trying to say is.I'm sorry."

Sakura looked at him through narrowed eyes at him as if she was trying to examine him.

"Are you okay?"

"Yes."

She put her hand to his forehead and butterflies seemed to be fluttering around in his stomach.She pulled her hand away and smiled at him as he turned beet red,

"Yeah well,me and Shikamaru really aren't going out.It was a plan to get you jealous."

Sasuke almost let that comment slip until it was his turn to ask her if she was okay.

"Sakura-chan?Are you okay?"

"Huh?Why?"

"Because…why would you want to make me jealous?"

Sakura found herself trapped in a corner as she searched her thoughts for an excuse.Then something occurred to her…

"Well…because…you tried to make me jealous!"

"Hn…just because I'm going out with Temari…"

Inner Sakura: OH YEAH!I HAVE STUMPED THE ALMIGHTY MASTER OF GETTING THE LAST WORD!

"Since you're not mad at me,and I'm not mad at you…are we friends again?"

Sasuke thought it over in his head,_'Hm…Uchiha Sasuke…having a friend?Seems kinda weird to me.'_

Sakura held out her hand,expecting Sasuke to shake it,and surprisingly,he did.

Inner Sakura: Wow,Sasuke's finally getting a friend for once.How amazing!

Sakura patted herself on the back for finally making amends with Sasuke after their little argument yesterday.Then,as if right on time,Temari showed up.

"Sasuke-kun!What are you doing over here with this trash?"

Sakura looked at Temari with distaste.

"He's not sitting beside you,so he's obviously not sitting beside trash!"

"Oh now you're gonna get it!"

"Temari…be quiet."

Temari stared in complete horror at Sasuke's sentence.

"B-but…Sasuke-kun!"

"Do you want to be my girlfriend or not?"

Temari pouted and ran off to some unknown place.

Sakura looked over at Sasuke and blushed when she saw that she was staring at him.

'_What's wrong with me?Me and Sasuke are just friends now.'_

"Were you really bent on my destruction when you beat me in the arcade?"

Sakura snapped out of her trance as Sasuke spoke.

"No,I wasn't."

"Then why-"

Sakura interrupted him blandly.

"It was because I have this weird affinity to be in first place at everything.I've never been beaten before,so I'm usually going to the arcade in every town that I visit to find the cream of the crop."

"So you can beat that boy or girl?"

"Yeah.But so far,I haven't met any girl gamers in any place I've been.It's pretty weird to me."

Sasuke nodded and stole the uneaten piece of cake from Sakura's lunch tray.Sakura didn't seem to mind as she began to talk again.

"You know what?"

"What?"

"The reason why I've been playing arcade games is because I wanted to beat the guys who used to tease me a lot when I was a kid.They always said that a girl could never beat them.I proved them wrong!"

Sasuke nodded again and started to think.

'_Hm…she's been teased as a kid too,huh?Pretty ironic.'_

"Sasuke-kun?"

Sasuke shook himself out of his little thinking session.

"Yup?"

Sakura leaned closer to him and he went stiff.Her face was nearly half way to his when she reached out and fumbled with something at the back of his shirt.

"What did you do!"

Sakura sat back down.

"Oh…you're tag was showing."

"(asd)…oh."

"See how thoughtful I am?"

Sakura smiled and tilted her head to the side as if to make herself look cuter.

"Hn…"


	14. Chapter 14

**_1ST PLACE ISN'T EXACTLY THE BEST_**

**_-CHAPTER FOURTEEN-_**

**_Are we more than friends but less than lovers?_**

_Sakura leaned closer to him and he went stiff.Her face was nearly half way to his when she reached out and fumbled with something at the back of his shirt._

"_What did you do!"_

_Sakura sat back down._

"_Oh…you're tag was showing."_

"_(asd)…oh."_

"_See how thoughtful I am?"_

_Sakura smiled and tilted her head to the side as if to make herself look cuter._

"_Hn…"_

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**Before we begin…**

I've noticed a spelling error in my last chapter thanks to one of my reviewers (whispers: thanks snakpak…tee hee).It's supposed to be the suffix -koi at the end of Temari's name when Sasuke addresses her.

**!Let's begin the story! **

A couple of weeks had passed from the day when the two friends had made up,but it seemed like they weren't friends at all.Instead,they were always with their lovers.Sasuke was with Temari and although Sakura wasn't really with Shikamaru before,they eventually decided to go out.After Sakura's little make-up with Sasuke,they didn't even talk to each other like they did before.Sasuke usually wouldn't try to talk to her when she said hi to him and it seemed like he was avoiding her.One day during third period,Sakura found herself brooding again.

'_Me and Sasuke made up from our fight.But we're still not talking or anything.Why?'_

-Hm…don't know.Maybe you scared him off when you fixed the tag of his shirt.He might've thought that we were trying to kiss him.-

'_Hey,I'm really a perfectionist when it comes to nit-picky things,okay?'_

-Whatever.Hey…Naruto's trying to talk to you.Better pay attention!-

Sakura was distracted as Naruto waved his hand in front of her face.

"Er…sorry Naruto-kun."

"Yeah,that's okay.But I was just asking if you and Sasuke-teme were still mad at each other.You used to argue a lot and now you're not even talking to each other!"

"Yup.We're friends…I think."

"Wow!Sasuke's never had a friend before!"

"Really?"

"Uh-huh.Even his old girlfriend was never really his friend.By the looks of it now,it doesn't even look like Temari's his friend either!"

"Naruto?"

"Yup?"

"You've grown up with Sasuke,right?Like you've been in his classes?"

"Uhh…yeah!"

"Then,aren't you his friend?"

"It's more like his acquaintance,ya know?"

Sakura looked over at Sasuke,who was still sitting beside Temari.He had refrained from even touching Temari ever since they made up.But Sasuke didn't really have his mind on his current girlfriend at all.Instead,he sometimes found himself in a daze because Sakura had actually admitted that Sasuke was her friend.He almost always was brooding,just like Sakura.

'_Hm…I finally have a friend,eh?I've never really had one before.'_

Sasuke sighed and slumped back in his seat.Their teacher was doing another boring lecture on advanced math again.

'_What if Sakura-chan turns out to be more than a friend?I don't know what'll happen if we get together then break up.'_

Temari looked over at him and blew him a kiss.

'_Note to self: get rid of Temari somehow.Maybe I'll force her onto that dobe,Naruto.'_

"Oh Sasuke-kuuuuuuun!"

'_Damn…Temari wants me to compliment her.Better make it quick.'_

Sasuke looked over at Temari and tried to look as innocent as possible,which proved difficult.

"You look so pretty today,Temari-koi."

"Thank you Sasuke-kun!"

She planted a kiss on Sasuke's cheek and went back to sleeping.

'_Yuck!She left another lip print!'_

Sasuke rubbed his cheek as if to try to rub off the essence of Temari from his face.

'_I can't even believe that Sakura-chan was actually friends with this ditz before!'_

While Sasuke was busy musing over Temari touching his 'perfect face',Sakura was in a deep conversation with her blonde seatmate.

"So,it's a fact that ramen is low in fat."

Sakura raised an eyebrow at Naruto.

"Really?"

Naruto just beamed.

"Like I said,it's a fact!"

Sakura sighed and looked over at Sasuke.He was looking back at her,but they both turned away when their eyes met.

"So,Naruto-kun!Have you ever considered going out with someone?"

Naruto's expression turned to one of confusion,but then he grinned at Sakura.

"Are you implying that you like meeeee,Sakura-chan?"

"No,Naruto-kun(asd).I'm saying that you can't live life just…alone."

Naruto scratched his head nervously.

"But who would I pick?"

Sakura scanned over all the girls in the class and her eyes stopped at Hinata.

"What about Hinata?She's cooled down from that little Gaara accident."

"But she's pregnant!"

Sakura looked at Naruto dumbly.But a plan struck her.

"I heard she likes you."

"Really?I kinda like her too!"

Inner Sakura: (asd)It's amazing how Naruto's perspective of someone can change when you say that they like him.

"Go for it Naruto.I heard that she might give her baby up for adoption anyway."

"I wouldn't care.She would take care of the baby and that's that."

"Naruto…you're so insensitive!"

Sakura punched Naruto and he pouted.

"I was just kidding,Sakura-chan!"

"Whatever,Naruto."

The bell rang and everyone got up to go to the cafeteria.Sakura automatically sat down with Shikamaru and the rest of her friends at their table in the cafeteria.Whilst Sasuke was sitting at his table with Temari and some other people that were Temari's new friends.

"Sakura-koi?"

Sakura looked over at Shikamaru.

"Eh?What is it Shika-kun?"

"I thought that you said that you and Sasuke made up.What's with the silence between you two?It's kinda weird."

"You mean kinda creepy and eerie and junk."

Shikamaru looked over at Naruto.

"Yeah,Naruto,whatever."

"I know,I know.I thought that we were going to actually be real friends too.I guess that the only types of friends that he looks forward to are girlfriends."

Ino grinned at Sakura.

"So maybe…"

"WE'RE JUST FRIENDS!"

It was normal for her friends to be asking her if she and Sasuke liked each other.Not a minute passed by during lunch and free periods without them mentioning that Sasuke looked extra lonely today or stuff like that.Sakura sighed again and looked over at Sasuke.He was eating cake while Temari was laughing very loudly with her friends.

'_He usually eats cake now.I wonder if it's the only thing he eats!'_

The rest of the day carried on like that.Sakura and Sasuke would be thinking of each other without the person they were thinking about knowing and they would sometimes smile at each other like they knew what either person was thinking.But one question had remained in their heads - are we just friends or more than friends?

It was the end of the day when Sasuke decided to talk to her.

Sasuke's head: If it's not now,when?I might as well just ask her out to see if she likes me or whatever…

Meanwhile,Sakura was packing up her bag and Shikamaru was waiting for her in the hall.

"Damn…better hurry up if he's going to walk me home…"

Sakura was hastily trying to get all of her books in her bag but…didn't succeed.Her books fell onto the floor as she attempted to get out the door in time.

"Whoops….I'm so clumsy(asd)."

Then,much to her surprise,Sasuke came over and helped her.

"Sasuke-kun?"

"Yup?"

"Uh…nevermind."

She continued to pack her bag and pick up her books at the same time.When the last book was put into her book bag,Sasuke turned on her.

"Sakura-chan?"

Sakura was about to turn around,but stopped upon hearing her name.

"Yeah,Sasuke-kun?"

"You wanna hang out later?You know…go to like a restaurant or something?"

Sakura hesitated for a bit.

'_Hm…what will Shika-kun say?'_

-Who cares!Sasuke's finally talking to you now!-

'_I guess that it'd be okay…'_

Sakura smiled at Sasuke and said,"Yeah,sure."

She headed out of the classroom and saw that Shikamaru wasn't there anymore.

"Dammit Shikamaru!You're so impatient!"

Sakura stormed out of the hallway,but when she opened the door of the school,she noticed that it was raining heavily.

"Damn…how am I going to get home now?"

The pink haired girl didn't notice Sasuke get into his car.It was only until he pulled up beside her that she recognized the same raven colored car that she had seen before.

"What does this person want now!"

Sakura was still fuming over her own boyfriend not waiting for her and she calmed down a little when she saw that Sasuke was in the driver's seat.

"Sa-Sasuke-kun?"

He opened the door to the passenger's seat and motioned for her to sit down.Sakura hopped in and couldn't help but laugh.

"What the hell are you laughing about?"

Sakura stopped and sheepishly looked over at Sasuke.

"Uh…you'd look funny in a hat?"

Sasuke raised an eyebrow at her and continued to speak.

"Hey.You wanna go to this restaurant place.It's pretty cool.They make really good spaghetti and-"

"Yeah,sure."

Sasuke never felt so stupid in his life.Upon being the top of the class,he never felt like he was about to slip to the ranks of Naruto,who was the stupidest person he ever knew.Now,he was acting so stupid because of a normal girl.He had seen and met girls before,so he didn't know why he was acting so weird.

Sasuke's head: The stupid things I do for love!...(asd)What the hell am I saying!

When they arrived at the restaurant,Sakura was pretty shocked to see only couples seated at the tables.

'_Ugh…another make-out place!'_

"Sasuke-kun?"

"Uh…yeah?"

"Are there always couples here(asd)."

Sasuke seemed as surprised as her.

"No…"

They sat down at an empty table and ordered two plates of spaghetti.But when the waiter came to their table,he came with only one plate,and they both had to share.

"What's with the bad service?"

"Hn…"

They both dug into the spaghetti and began to finish it.And even though they were both sharing a romantic meal with each other,Sakura refused to look at Sasuke and just looked in the other direction.It was only when they had both picked up the same strand of spaghetti that they had finally looked at each other.Sasuke closed his eyes as he slowly inched towards Sakura.Sakura was panicking…again.

'What the hell is with this Uchiha and kissing girls!'

As if it were instinct,Sakura bit down on her end of the spaghetti noodle and Sasuke ate up the rest of it.

-Real smooth Sakura!-

Sasuke,however,was looking as if he did the most embarrassing thing in the world.He was blushing heavily and was avoiding eye contact with her.

"Sasuke-kun?"

"Hn…?"

"You wanna go over to the arcade?We can fit in a couple of games before 5."

He nodded without looking up still and Sakura's inner self was going crazy.

-There?You see!He tried to kiss us and then you refused to.But when you did,he was humiliated!-

'_Yeah,thanks for making me feel bad!'_

When they had finished off the rest of the spaghetti,they went to the arcade.There were even more people in there that Sakura didn't know from last week.After her little unveiling,every male in the arcade had asked her out.It didn't matter to her though since she had turned them all down.She had a good reason too.Almost all of the people that asked her out had bullied her before when she pretended to be a guy.She just found it pretty stupid.

"Hey…Sasuke!You going out with the girl that beat you?"

Sakura turned around to see a tall boy with a look of pure evil on his face..But Sakura found it funny that his fingernails were painted.She couldn't help but laugh as Sasuke looked at the person.

"What do you want,Itachi?"

"Nothing,little brother."

Sakura's jaw fell.

"He…is…your brother!"

Sasuke nodded as she examined Itachi further.He had weird lines on his face that were probably the result of loss of sleep…or some kind of weird bone formation on his face.

'_If the people from fashion magazine saw this guy,they'd faint from such weird things that he did to his nails!'_

Sakura chuckled to herself as the two brothers continued their heated discussion.

"I thought I told you to leave that Temari girl alone."

"Why!"

"Because I don't like her.What if you end up marrying that bitch?"

"What do you care?"

"We're the last surviving members of our whole Uchiha lineage!We were lucky that we inherited mother and father's money!"

"Is that all you care about?"

"YES!"

Itachi just left them alone and Sasuke let out a sight of relief.

"I thought that jerk was never going to leave…"

"Huh?That's you're brother?"

Sasuke nodded…and Sakura burst out laughing.

"What's so funny?(sigh)You're so annoying."

Sakura stopped laughing and gave a playful punch to Sasuke's arm.

"Hey!No saying that I'm annoying is allowed!"

"Why?It's the truth."

'_At least he's actually talking to me now…no more of those 'hns' or single word replies anymore.(sigh)'_


	15. Chapter 15

**_1ST PLACE ISN'T EXACTLY THE BEST_**

**_-CHAPTER FIFTEEN-_**

**_Are we more than friends but less than lovers? Pt.2_**

"_What's so funny?(sigh)You're so annoying."_

_Sakura stopped laughing and gave a playful punch to Sasuke's arm._

"_Hey!No saying that I'm annoying is allowed!"_

"_Why?It's the truth."_

'_At least he's actually talking to me now…no more of those 'hns' or single word replies anymore.(sigh)'_

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"How about we try the new shooting game?It's a mutli-player one,so you can't get beaten by me!"

"Hardy-har-har,Sakura-chan.Why don't we play that one?"

"The one that's called 'Bloody massacre 10?'It looks kinda gory."

"(sigh)Then what do you want to play!"

Sakura looked around the arcade and finally had an idea.

"Why don't we challenge a couple of kids against a two on two match?"

"No way!"

Sakura pouted.

"Why?You don't want to get beaten by kids?"

Sasuke couldn't help but give in to her challenge.He was of course the 'epitome of testosterone' after all.

"If we get beaten though,I'm holding you against it,Sasuke-kun!"

"Why me?"

"Cause you're the weakest link here!"

"Just because you beat me like what,three times?"

"Do you know how mad you were after those three times!"

"Argh!Forget it!

Sasuke began to storm away but Sakura stopped him in the process.She gave him her best pouty face and he caved yet again.There was a couple close to their age that they challenged to DDR ((I love ddr,so don't hold it against me!)).After Sasuke and Sakura both agreed that Sasuke could go first,they were all set.Sakura got a bit worried about cheering for him since the last time he was distracted while they were playing this game,he had lost terribly.

'_Meh…I'll pick up any of the slack!'_

The round went smoothly without any of them missing a beat…until Sasuke's opponent fell on his ankle as Sasuke took first place.

"HAHAHAHA!SUCKER!"

Sasuke was celebrating very loudly…and that earned him a hit on the head from Sakura.

"Sasuke you jerk!He fell on his ankle.I don't think that he can walk anymore!"

Sasuke rubbed the back of his head where Sakura had hit him.

"Don't go around hitting people that are better than you!"

Their yelling escalated to a full-out war while their challengers watched helplessly.

"What do you mean by that!I'm way better than you!"

"No you're not!"

"Then let's go!You against me!"

"FINE!"

"FINE!"

Sakura and Sasuke had both set the difficulty to high and just kept on going.Both of then surprisingly tied in the end and were forced to take another round.It was only when someone said,"Boy does this couple fight a lot!" did they stop.

"Hey you!"

"Sasuke!Don't yell at that punk!Leave some for me!"

They both ran after the owner of that comment and beat him into the ground,and to Sakura's surprise,she was having a lot of fun...but with Sasuke.

'_How come I've never had this much fun on dates with Shika-kun?All we did was watch clouds…'_

-I think you like Sasuke.-

'_(blush)I do not!'_

Sakura looked over at Sasuke and he was leaning against the wall and looking like his usual self.But instead of feeling the usual rage towards him,she felt a feeling of pure bliss and warmth.Sakura was caught in a weird trance as she stared at Sasuke.All Sasuke did was look at her weirdly and wave his hand in front of her face.

"Uhh…Sakura-chan?"

Sakura giggled.

"Are you okay?"

Sakura giggled again.

"Hey!Stop giggling!"

Sakura instantly stopped and looked up at him.He was looking at her with confusion on his face and she automatically blushed.

'_What the hell has gotten into me!'_

"Gomen…I just kind of…blanked out."

"Whatever…just don't do it again.It was…scary."

Sakura grinned and headed towards the bar.

"You want something,Sasuke-kun?"

"Why do you have to pay?Girls aren't allowed to pay on a-"

"Date?"

Sasuke looked at her weird as if he was expecting her to slap him and he started to speak.

"Uh…yeah.But since we're not on one…"

Sakura nodded and said,"I'll pay.You just owe me one later,okay?"

Sakura tried to cover up her shock as she ordered their drinks.

'_He just implied that we were on a date!'_

-Yeah…he's such a jerk for implying that he liked you in that sentence.-

'You're sarcasm isn't appreciated right about now!'

-Whatever…-

Sakura grabbed their drinks and sat down at the table that Sasuke had chosen.

"So….uh."

Sakura looked at the now nervous person who people referred to as the 'human ice cube'.

_'I have to give him that idea that I don't like him!Shika-kun might think that I'm cheating on him!'_

"Hey,Sasuke-CHAN?What time is it?"

Sasuke stopped looking nervous and she could tell that he had taken note of the -chan part of his name that replaced the usual -kun.

"It's…5."

"Really?"

Sasuke nodded.

"Dammit!I had to go run errands by 5!"

"Errands?"

"Yeah.I had to help my next door neighbor with cleaning her condo and I had to help water my other neighbor's plants."

Sasuke hesitated,then offered her a ride.Sakura gratefully accepted it and they had reached her condo in record time.

"I'll walk you to your condo for you."

'_Damn…what do I do!WHAT DO I DO!'_

-Just calm down.I don't think that he'll want to kiss you this time!-

'_Alright…I'm trusting you on this one…'_

There was on obvious tension between the two.Sakura was being jumpy and Sasuke was looking like every breath that he took might be his last.It was eerily silent between the two and it made the tension seem even more thicker around them.Even people that they had never met before looked at them like they were the mostcutest couplein the world.Then…they reached the Sakura's door step...

"Uhh…thanks Sasuke-kun."

Sasuke scratched the back of his head nervously and leaned in closer to Sakura.

-Looks like I was wrong.-

'_You were!I TOLD YOU SO!'_

-No more celebrating!You're about to get kissed!Instead that this time,you're not going to knock him out?Are you?-

_'I-I don't know…'_

Sakura closed her eyes as she went terribly stiff.Her fists were clenched so tight that her knuckles were turning white.She braced herself as Sasuke's warm breath tickled her neck.Then he kissed her.It wasn't a normal one,in fact,he had kissed her forehead.

-Lucky you Sakura,it wasn't a real kiss.-

'_(sigh)I must be the most stupidest person in the world!"_

Sasuke looked at Sakura in the eye and smiled.It was a very wide one that wasn't usually seen on his face.It actually made him look positively cuter.

"I'll see you around,Sakura nee-chan?"

'_Great…now I'm considered as an older sibling!'_

-Really?I thought that he was older…hm…-

"Bye,Sasuke-kun!"

Sasuke turned around and headed back to the lobby as Sakura unlocked her door.

"I feel so ugh-ish for thinking that he'd actually kiss me."

-Really?I think that he just missed.-

"Oh shut up!He doesn't strike me as the type of guy who would miss a girl's lips!"

-How do you know that he didn't miss?He may have a problem with depth perception of something!-

"He does not have a problem with anything!"

-Yeah,you're right,cause you have the problem!-

"What the hell are you talking about!"

-I saw you giggling like crazy in the arcade!What was with that!-

"Shut up already!"

**Back to Sasuke…**

Sasuke sighed as he got back into his car.He could have gone crazy from that whole experience that he had just witnessed.

'_I'm so stupid!'_

Evil voice in Sasuke's head: -Don't sweat it,Sasuke!

'_I can't believe I missed!'_

-I'm sure that all first timers miss!-

_'SHH!Someone might hear you!'_

-Who cares?No one knows that you haven't even kissed a girl yet!-

_'Meh...who cares...did you hear the way she called me Sasuke-chan?It sounded pretty weird...'_

-You're telling me!Hey,are you still considering her as a girlfriend?-

_'(asd)Uhh...no!'_

-What about Temari?-

_'Screw Temari!I like Sakura!'_

-Aha!I knew it!You like the annoying girl!-

_'Damn!Note to self: never respond to the voice in my head ever again!'_


	16. Chapter 16

**_1ST PLACE ISN'T EXACTLY THE BEST_**

**_-CHAPTER SIXTEEN-_**

_**Sickness of the heart**_

_-You're telling me!Hey,are you still considering her as a girlfriend?-_

_'(asd)Uhh...no!'_

_-What about Temari?-_

_'Screw Temari!I like Sakura!'_

_-Aha!I knew it!You like the annoying girl!-_

'_Damn!Note to self: never respond to the voice in my head ever again!'_

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Sakura was getting ready for bed while her brain started working again.She felt so lazy after helping her neighbors with their chores.

"Maybe he did miss."

-Oh…so now you want to think about your Sasuke-chan?-

"Fine.I don't like him if you just wanted to know.Are you satisfied now?"

-No!I wanted you to like him!-

"What the hell…?"

Sakura pulled on her pajamas and hopped into bed.

"Damn…what if Shika-kun finds out that I went on a date with Sasuke-kun?"

-Who said it was a date?-

"What do you mean by that!It was clearly a date!He officially walked me to my condo and then he tried to kiss me!That says 'DATE' written all over it!"

Sakura sighed before her inner self could even retaliate.

-What the hell is wrong with you now!-

"So…tired…"

-WHAT!It's only 8!Call up your girls or something.-

All Sakura did was yawn.

-Sakura!-

Her inner self's plea was answered by a soft snore as Sakura drifted off into sleep…

**The next morning…**

"What time is it?"

Sakura looked over at her alarm clock and saw that it was only 7.

"Good…I won't be late today!"

She got out of bed half-asleep and started brushing her teeth as she was getting ready.Her phone rang violently during the process of putting on her uniform.She answered it and much to her surprise,it was Ino.

"Hello?I-Ino-chan?"

"Hey Sakura-chan!Do you want to go to the mall today?"

Sakura got pretty confused.Mostly because she wasn't fully awake by then.

"What…?It's a school day today."

"No it's not!It's Saturday!"

"(asd)Oh…okay…I'll meet you at the mall."

"No…we'll pick you up.I think that you'd get run over if we let you go by yourself.You sound so tired."

Sakura agreed and fell back onto her bed.For some odd reason,she didn't feel so well and she felt like her head was burning up.

"….I think I'm sick…"

-How could you be sick!-

"I…don't know…"

Sakura got up from her bed with much trouble and checked her temperature.It read 105.

-Sakura…you better get to bed.-

She nodded but before she could crawl back into bed,she heard a person knocking at her door.

'_Must be Ino…'_

Sakura opened the door and saw Ino,TenTen and Hinata there.

"Hey(cough)…guys(sniff)."

"Sakura-chan!You're sick!"

She looked over at Ino and she looked pretty concerned.

"No,Ino-chan…I'm okay."

"You should get back to bed,Sakura-chan!"

"I'm fine Hinata-chan…"

"Just get back to bed!"

"No!I don't want to!"

But before Sakura could force her friends to take her with them,they pushed her back into bed and made her soup before they left.Sakura was still fuming after she chugged down the chicken noodle soup.

"Stupid Ino-pig…making me stay in my house…."

She put her head down on the pillow and attempted to get to sleep,but she couldn'tShe tried sleeping in a different position,but that didn't work.

"Why the hell can't I sleep!"

Sakura tossed and turned in her bed and finally gave up on sleeping all together.

"I'll just watch tv then…"

She sat herself down on the couch in her living room and flipped through the channels.Nothing seemed to keep her entertained,so she moved onto using the computer.She had updated her blog and no one seemed to be online,so she stopped doing anything out of sheer boredom.

"I hate being sick!"

Sakura was about to parade back outside to go to the mall,but there was a knock at the door.

"Is Ino-pig here again!I'm gonna chew here fucking ear off!"

Sakura forced the door open and started yelling at the person in front of her.

"INO!YOU STUPID PIG!I HAVE TO STAY IN MY FREAKIN CONDO ALL DAY THANKS TO YOU!YOU BITCH!"

"Uhhh,Sakura-chan?"

Then still-pissed off Sakura looked up and didn't see her normal friend Ino.Instead,she saw the bewildered-looking Sasuke.The raven-haired boy looked at her with his annoyed look and a hint of blush grazed his cheeks.

"Sasuke-kun?What're you doing here?"

"Ohh…uhh…I-I-…"

Sakura could have burst out laughing at the sight of the emotion-less Uchiha blushing AND stuttering at the same time.Then Sakura saw the bouquet of flowers nestled in Sasuke's arms and smiled.

"Ohhh…Sasuke-kun!You brought me orchids?I love orchids!"

"Yeah…I-I d-did."

He held out the bouquet to her and she took them gratefully.

"Why don't you come in?I'll make some tea."

Sasuke hesitated before he walked into Sakura's condo.

"Why don't you(cough)sit on the couch while I go warm the water."

Sasuke sat down on the couch as the pink haired girl instructed and looked around.The place was well furnished with every piece of furniture looking brand new.She had a couple of plants here and there and the air smelled slightly of expensive perfume that Sakura put on everyday.He had taken note of her usual scent of cherry blossoms and her whole condo smelled of them.He stopped looking around and began to speak,

"Sakura-chan,are you sick?"

The pink haired girl nodded and he gave her a slightly worried look.

"Shouldn't you be in bed?"

When he mentioned the word 'bed',Sakura went eerily silent.Then started yelling.

"Don't…remind me!"

"Okay…okay!No yelling!You're so annoying…"

"(cough)Shup up!"

"…whatever."

Sakura put the kettle onto the stove and sat down beside Sasuke on the couch.He didn't seem to care that she was absolutely sick right now,but he never really did care about anything not concerning him.

"Hey…why are you wearing your uniform?"

Sakura looked down at her clothes.Sasuke was right.She still was wearing her uniform and she had forgotten to change.

"Oh…well,I thought that it was Friday so I just went ahead and got dressed."

The Uchiha looked at her with pity and said,"You really are stupid."

"(asd)Thanks a lot Sasuke…"

"No problem."

It was silent between the two as they sat on the couch.Sakura took this time as a period of brooding.

'_Why's Sasuke-kun here?Did he hear that I was sick?'_

-Maybe…or he might've just wanted to visit you.-

'_Wow,you really narrow things down a lot…'_

Sakura turned to Sasuke and looked at him in the eye.

"Hey…Sasuke-kun?"

"What do you want?"

"Uhh…why are you here?"

Sakura could see the nervousness on Sasuke's face while he searched for an excuse.

"Well…I..umm saw your friends at the mall and they said that you were sick so…"

"That's why you came here with a bouquet of flowers?"

Sasuke could tell that Sakura was definitely not convinced and that she was going to figure out by instinct that he liked her.

"Uhh…yeah…that's why I came here…with flowers."

Sakura eyed him suspiciously.

"Oh really,huh?Well thanks…even though you're lying anyway."

Sakura gave him a little kiss on the cheek and Sasuke turned beet red.

"Sa-Sa…Sakura.There was something that I've been meaning to tell you…"

"…Go on…"

"I…I…"

Sakura looked at Sasuke weirdly.

'_I thought that Sasuke-kun was this solid piece of ice.Now,it seems like he's just a nervous wreck…'_

"I like…"

The pink haired girl looked at him impatiently.

"I like yo-"

"Oh!The kettle!I forgot all about it!"

Sakura hopped up from the couch and left Sasuke there to wallow in his failure of not being able to tell her while she ran to the kitchen.She emerged out of the kitchen with their tea and set it down on the coffee table.She looked over at Sasuke and smiled.

"What were you saying,Sasuke-kun?"

"…(asd)nothing."

They both picked up a cup of tea and started talking again.

"Sakura-chan?"

"What is it?"

Sasuke looked over at Sakura and swallowed hard.

"Do you remember that time that we were near the arcade and then I got mad at you…and then I was going tostorm away?"

Sakura nodded calmly,but her thoughts in her head were all over the place.

Inner Sakura: Damn…I think I know where this is going…

"…You stopped me from storming off and then you said that you (ahem)really liked me…(ahem)"

Sakura almost choked on her tea.

'_How could he have remembered that?That was so many weeks ago!'_

"…What about it?"

"Well…you said that you-"

"Oh please Sasuke-kun!That was such a long time ago!"

Inner Sakura: This is a definite red flag here!

Sasuke looked down at his shoes disappointedly as he spoke.

"Does that mean…that you don't like me anymore?"

Sakura was at a loss of words.The person sitting across from her had just asked her if she had feelings for a person that she had admired for a long time.But she still couldn't bring herself to admit that she had liked Sasuke from the first time that they had met.

"N…no.I don't like you anymore."

Inner Sakura: What the hell am I saying…?

"Oh…good.Cause I hate you,you know that right?"

The disappointment could be heard clearly in Sasuke's voice.

"Yeah,I know that you hate me."

Automatically,Sasuke adverted back to his emotionless state,but he still looked a bit uneasy.

"Yeah,well I gotta go,Sakura-chan."

Sasuke put his empty cup down and stood up.

"Okay,I'll see you on Monday."

They both stood up and before Sasuke walked out the door,he kissed Sakura on the forehead and turned around without saying a word.She closed the door behind him and slumped back down on the couch.

"I'm so stupid,I told you that right?"

-Oh so many times did you tell me that.-

Sakura fidgeted in her seat as she sat there uncomfortably.

"Why didn't I just tell him that I liked him?"

-Because you're the stupidest person in the world for being so shy.-

"Now he probably thinks that I'm a total jerk for dumping him like that."

-Yup,I know.He was even going to tell you that he liked you.-

"But being the inconsiderate person that I am,I just interrupted him,"

-Thank you captain obvious!-

Sakura was sulking in the chair until she remembered that she had to put the bouquet of orchids into water.She found them on the kitchen table and she picked them up.It was only when she tried to smell the flowers' scent that she noticed that they were plastic.

"Huh?They're plastic?"

She studied them a bit and then found a card nestled in the middle of the bouquet.The card read - '_The day that these flowers wilt will be the day that I stop loving you…'_


	17. Chapter 17

**_1ST PLACE ISN'T EXACTLY THE BEST_**

**_-CHAPTER SEVENTEEN-_**

_**The truth**_

_-Yup,I know.He was even going to tell you that he liked you.-_

"_But being the inconsiderate person that I am,I just interrupted him,"_

_-Thank you captain obvious!-_

_Sakura was sulking in the chair until she remembered that she had to put the bouquet of orchids into water.She found them on the kitchen table and she picked them up.It was only when she tried to smell the flowers' scent that she noticed that they were plastic._

"_Huh?They're plastic?"_

_She studied them a bit and then found a card nestled in the middle of the bouquet.The card read - 'The day that these flowers wilt will be the day that I stop loving you…'_

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The card with the surprising messaged written on it slipped out of the now foolish-looking Sakura.

"Heh…I'm pretty stupid…"

She picked up the card to check of it was indeed Sasuke's writing.

-There's no need in checking it.It is his writing!-

"But…why would he tell me now?Right exactly when I'm with Shikamaru-kun!"

-Guys are like that my dear!-

Sakura fought back tears as she fell to her knees and ripped the card into tiny,miniscule confetti pieces.

"Stupid Sasuke-kun!Why are you so dumb!"

The pink haired girl started venting out her anger by attempting to dent the wall with her fists.

"Uhh…Sakura-chan?"

Sakura looked up and saw Naruto.She tried to straighten herself out and wipe away her tears,but it was too late.Naruto had already seen her.

"Um,what is it Naruto-kun?"

He scratched the back of his head nervously.

"Oh,well Hinata-koi told me that you were sick so I decided to bring you some soup to make you feel better."

Naruto neatly put a bowl of ramen on the kitchen table.Sakura looked at him skeptically.

"Naruto-kun?That's ramen."

Naruto seemed confused as he inspected the contents of the bowl.

"Hm.You're right.Oh well,ramen's just as good."

"(asd)Thanks?"

"Ohh…you're very welcome Sakura-chan.No need to thank me!"

It was silent for a while,then Sakura looked at the remnants of Sasuke's card.The only pieces that were readable said,_'I love you._'Sakura sighed and tears fell down her already damp eyes.

"Eh?What's wrong,Sakura-chan?"

Sakura paused before replying.

"…Everything."

Naruto obviously had the finesse of an unmarried man in this department.

"To tell you the truth,Sakura-chan…Sasuke-teme sent me here to look after you."

Sakura looked at Naruto with confusion.

"But…I already dumped him and-"

"WHAT!You dumped Sasuke-teme!"

Sakura nodded and continued,"He asked me if I liked him…and then this is the result of my answer."

Sakura held up the pieces of paper that she had read and Naruto looked at them weirdly.

"What,Sakura-chan?You love me?"

"(asd)No you dork!I love…"

Naruto leaned in to hear her answer better.

"You love what,Sakura-chaaaaaaaaaaaaan?"

It almost seemed like this was a whole game for Naruto.

"I love (ahem) Sasuke-kun (ahem)."

"I knew it!I better go tell him-"

"No!Don't…"

"Eh?"

"He'd think that I was…a jerk and a liar and…(sigh)yeah."

Naruto ruffled Sakura's hair a bit.

"No he won't Sakura-chan!"

"Well…how do I know that I was just set up?"

"You don't."

"Huh?"

"You just gotta trust yourself!"

Sakura finally saw Naruto in a new light.He wasn't as dumb as he portrayed himself to be.

"Naruto-kun,you're a genius!"

Sakura shooed Naruto out the door and put on her regular clothes.

-What the hell are you doing!-

"I'm getting ready to go talk to Sasuke-kun!"

-But why?-

"Just because!"

Sakura locked the door and ran towards the lobby.Hopefully,Sasuke would still be there.

'_Hm…do you see Sasuke-kun's car?'_

-Nope!-

When she saw that his car wasn't there,she ran to the most likely place that he would be.The arcade.

**At the arcade…**

When Sakura finally reached the arcade,she was out of breath and was already breathing deeply.Even though she was tired for running across 5 blocks,she ran around the area ooking for Sasuke.She finally found him at the bar with Temari and some of her friends.

"Sasuke-kun!"

The whole group of people turned their heads to look at who called out to him,but Sasuke didn't.

"Ugh…what do you want Haruno?"

"None of your business.I asked for Sasuke-kun."

Sasuke didn't even want to look at her as he spoke,"Get out of my face."

Sakura looked at him with bewilderment.

"…Sasuke-kun…"

"I already told you to leave me alone!"

"You fucking jerk!"

Sakura started storming away,but Sasuke's hand held onto her right hand tightly.

"Sasuke-kun?What do you want?"

Sasuke ignored her question and spoke on his accord.

"What's that in your left hand?"

"Huh?"

Then Sakura remembered the ripped pieces of card were still wedged inside her clenched fist.

"…nothing."

'_What is this guy,psychic!'_

Sasuke let go of her hand and Sakura let go of the pieces of paper absent mindedly as she turned around.

'_I hope you find a better life you jerk…'_

Sakura walked away and stepped outside.

-What was that all about?-

'_I dunno.He's being immature,as usual.'_

**Back inside the arcade…**

Sasuke was pretending to listen to Temari's mindless chatter and reached down to pick up the bunch of torn papers that Sakura had left behind by mistake.He unraveled them under the table that they were sitting at and found that the words were written in his writing.

'_So…what she was holding was from that bunch of orchids…'_

He rearranged the words and read the message.

'_Sakura's so stupid…(chuckle)'_

**…**

"This mission was a complete failure!"

-Yup,it was-

'_Now,Sasuske-kun's mad at me and what am I going to tell Shikamaru-kun?'_

-Just tell him that you don't like him and you fell deeply in love with your enemy.-

'_Yeah…I'm really going to do that!'_

-Fine,don't take my advice!-

Sakura made her way home disappointed.Her fanclub could even tell that she was too tired and even too depressed to be bothered for a date or kiss.Then she saw Shikamaru.He was lying down in a field near a forest and was looking up at the clouds.Sakura decided to go and join him.

"Hey,Shikamaru-kun!"

"Hi Sakura-koi."

Sakura lay down beside and decided to keep her cheery act going to divert his attention.

"So,what's up?I heard that you were sick."

"Oh,well I feel better now."

Shikamaru looked at her worried.

"You should take care of yourself.It would be too troublesome for both of us to monitor your health."

"Alright,fine.I'll just go home and rest then."

Sakura got up and left.

'_Baka Nara…he's always so worried about me.'_

-He means well…and he's also your boyfriend,so I wouldn't insult him like that.-

'_Right…'_

Sakura made her way to her condo building when someone stopped her from behind.

"(gasp)What do you want?"

"Relax,it's only me."

Sakura turned around and saw who she didn't expect.It was…Temari.

"Temari!"

"I want to make this quick,so shut up and listen!"

Sakura nodded.

"Alright,I know that Sasuke-kun has loved me more ever since you dumped him…"

Inner Sakura: (asd)How does everyone know that I dumped him!

"So now,I,Temari,am holding a little competition thing to see if Sasuke-kun really likes me and not…you."

"Huh?How will this plan of yours work?"

"You and Sasuke will compete against each other in any kind of game or contest of choice,and whoever wins picks the person that they want to be with."

"I see…but what if I'm still with Shika-kun and Sasuke-kun picks me?"

Temari thought for a moment.

"Hm…then I'll have to go out with him."

Sakura thought this over in her head before accepting the challenge.

"Alright…I accept."

Temari smiled mischievously.

"Okay,it'll be held after the school dance and will consist of two rounds,got it?"

"Got it."

Temari walked away and Sakura started brooding again.

'_The school dance is about…1 or 2 weeks from now…'_

-So?You'll still beat Sasuke!-

'_That's right!'_

-But the question is…who will you pick?-


	18. Chapter 18

**_1ST PLACE ISN'T EXACTLY THE BEST_**

**_-CHAPTER EIGHTEEN-_**

_**The Naras**_

_Temari smiled mischievously._

"_Okay,it'll be held after the school dance and will consist of two rounds,got it?"_

"_Got it."_

_Temari walked away and Sakura started brooding again._

'_The school dance is about…1 or 2 weeks from now…'_

_-So?You'll still beat Sasuke!-_

'_That's right!'_

_-But the question is…who will you pick?-_

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Before we begin…

More replies to reveiws!WAHOOO!

Little wolf blossom: I know…Sasuke's a real pain in the ass.But this story is loosely based on a real experience,so I can relate (tee hee…).

Luv hate it: First off,Sakura might just slip up and let Sasuke take it…or maybe she'll just win and she'll be able to pick either Shikamaru or Sasuke.Secondly,the pairings might just switch up a bit,so who have to keep on reading (muahahahahahaha).**Lastly…**

**THANK YOU TO EVERYONE WHO EVER REVIEWED…CAUSE IF YOU DIDN'T…MY STORY WOULD BE CRAP AND I WOULDN'T HAVE CONTINUED IT!**

**!Let's begin the story!**

Sakura had wandered around town looking for her unobvious answer.She was not paying any matter to where she was going as she pondered that thought.

'_Who will it be?…who will it be?'_

Sakura could go absolutely crazy.She fell deep into thought every time she saw the same color of Sasuke's clothes or when she smelt his scent on someone else.

'_I'm….(sigh) obsessed.'_

-Really?I thought that you were just crazy!-

'_I have no time to argue with you…'_

Sakura sadly looked up and storm clouds began to gather in the sky.It started to pour down upon her as she focused at the dark thundering clouds in the sky.

-Eh…Sakura?-

'_What?'_

-Here comes Shikamaru!-

'_Huh?'_

The absent minded pink haired girl looked in front of her and there was Shikamaru.

"Hey Sakura-koi."

Sakura looked sadly at the ground and at least acknowledged his presence with a quick nod.

"Temari…just told me about her little plan…and that you accepted it."

"It's my last chance…"

'…_To impress Sasuke-kun and prove to him that he's a big jerk.'_

Shikamaru nodded.

"You're…going to pick me,right?"

Sakura tried to act cheery as she scratched the back of her head nervously.

"I guess so."

Shikamaru avoided eye contact with her and looked away.

"This…is so troublesome…"

Sakura chuckled and smiled.

"Yeah…it is."

Then they both went in opposite directions as they walked away.Then it struck her.

'_I…don't need Sasuke-kun!He's just a big jerk!'_

-Oh…so you notice that now?-

'_Shut up!I'm done thinking now!'_

Then the sky cleared up as the sun shone through.

"Wow…that was the shortest rain storm I've ever seen…"

"Yup,it was."

She turned around instantly and saw Sasuke.

'_What's he doing here?'_

Sakura walked away from him,but he stayed persistent.Then Sakura stopped in her tracks.

"What do you want Uchiha?"

"…"

"I thought so."

Sakura began to walk away,but suddenly stopped.She couldn't help but turn around to see Sasuke's face.He had a slight blush grazing his cheeks and he was grinning.Sakura still looked at him suspiciously and he grinned more widely.

"…Stupid jerk…"

Sakura started walking again and he threw a piece of paper at her head.

"Baka teme!Leave me alone!"

She turned around and slapped him.She was still fuming when she picked up the piece of paper and ran the rest of the way home.When she reached her condo building,she was still pissed off at Sasuke.

-Hey,Sakura.What does the piece of paper say on it?-

She stared dumbfounded at the piece of paper wedged in her clenched fist.

'_Must not be something important if it's from him.'_

Sakura threw the piece of paper onto the pavement and hurried into her condo before signs of Sasuke lurking about appeared.

-What if it was?-

'_Who cares!Hm…'_

Sakura searched in her pocket for her key,but it was nowhere to be seen.

"I…misplaced my key!"

-WHAT!-

Sakura searched worriedly threw her pockets and turned them all inside out.

-Search in your bag…it might be in there!-

She rummaged through the contents of her bag and it wasn't there either.Then she remembered that she always kept a spare with Shikamaru.

'_He might just have the spare…or else I'll have to request that a new key be made.That'll take at least a day…'_

Sakura made her way to Shikamaru's house.

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The pink haired girl rapped on the door of the Nara household.There was no answer.

-Maybe they're not in.-

But before Sakura had turned around to head home,a woman who Sakura assumed was Shikamaru's mother opened the door.Her face showed that she was slightly strict,which was not a trait of her son's,but she also resembled the very lazy Shikamaru.

"Is…Shika-kun home?"

The woman looked confusedly at Sakura,but her look of confusion was replaced instantly with a smile.

"Oh…you must be Sakura!Shikamaru will be down in a minute."

Mrs.Nara withdrew her head back inside the house and yelled viciously at her husband to get their son.A feeble,"Yes,dear" could be heard from where Sakura was standing.Shikamaru's mother basically pushed her son outside the door when he answered the door.

"Your mother's very…unique."

Shikamaru smiled.

"Yup,she's one of a kind."

Sakura didn't hesitate to getting to the point.

"Shika-kun,I lost my key and since you have a spare…"

"I had a spare?"

Sakura looked at him quizzically.

"I thought I gave you one…"

Then it hit her.She had given the extra key to Sasuke since he was the only one who knew where she lived at the time.

"Well…I don't remember you giving me it.So now you're locked out of your house,how troublesome."

"(asd)Yeah,I am.But I requested another one and I should be getting it tomorrow."

"But where will you stay right now?"

Sakura could have cried.

Inner Sakura: Why doesn't he just offer me to stay at his house?

"I don't know Shika-kun…"

Sakura tried to keep her voice as sugary sweet as possible,but if he didn't get the point soon,she would have to kill him.Then miraculouskly,Shikamaru's mother poked her head outside and looked at Sakura with pity.

"Oh Sakura!I couldn't help but eavesdrop.You don't have a place to stay?Why don't you stay with us tonight?"

Sakura sighed with relief.

"Thank you Mrs.Nara."

Mrs.Nara smiled.

"My baka son doesn't know how to be courteous to a lady."

At that comment,Shikamaru's mother glared at him and he just cowered under his mother's wrath.He grabbed Sakura's hand and darted inside as an attempt to escape his mother.Sakura smiled at him.

"You're mother's very nice."

He looked at her like she was supposed to be in an insane asylum.

"What are you talking about?She's the pushiest woman I've ever known!"

Sakura bopped him on the head.

"Don't about you mother like that.At least your mother's here with you!"

"Yeah…well she's just too troublesome…"

Then his father's voice called for them from down the stairs.

"Hey,Shikamaru!We're having dinner…and bring your girlfriend too."

"(asd)Does your father even know my name?"

"I highly doubt that…"

'_This is going to be so much fun…'_((sarcasm intended.))


	19. Chapter 19

**_1ST PLACE ISN'T EXACTLY THE BEST_**

**_-CHAPTER NINETEEN-_**

**_An unexpected guest_**

_Sakura bopped him on the head._

"_Don't about your mother like that.At least your mother's here with you!"_

"_Yeah…well she's just too troublesome…"_

_Then his father's voice called for them from down the stairs._

"_Hey,Shikamaru!We're having dinner…and bring your girlfriend too."_

"_(asd)Does your father even know my name?"_

"_I highly doubt that…" _

'_This is going to be so much fun…'((sarcasm intended.))_

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Sakura could tell that her boyfriend wasn't exactly ecstatic about her being there.He didn't give her the occasional peck on the cheek or the weird smile that he would usually give her when he complimented her.

'_Shikamaru-kun's such an asshole sometimes…but I guess that he's my boyfriend regardless.'_

Sakura gave him a peck on his cheek as they descended the stairs.Shikamaru looked at her weirdly.

"What was that about?"

Sakura smiled at him.

"Nothing…"

They both sat beside each other at the dinner table.It was laden with a large turkey in the middle and a heavy amount of rice and mashed potatoes.

Inner Sakura: How can one little family eat this much?

Sakura made sure not to come off as greedy when they offered her a plate of rice.It looked like Mrs.Nara wouldn't approve of her if she ate too little or too much.

'_(asd)His mom's kinda freaky…'_

-You're telling me!It looks like she'll stab us if we eat too much!-

But that was only the beginning of it.Sakura was soon bombarded with questions that generally involved her career and her parents from Shikamaru's mother.Sakura noticed that his mother was very nit-picky about certain aspects of interest about who was involved with her family. This obviously annoyed Sakura and made Shikamaru look nervous about his mother's approval of his girlfriend.

"What about your modeling career?Is it very structured and well balanced?"

"Yes,it is.My agent makes sure that my career is carefully built up before I take on any major deals."

"I see.What about the income?Would you say that you are overworked and underpaid?"

"No,modeling is quite stressing because of the fame,but I deal with it.The income is considerably…large for a person of my age."

Sakura could tell that Mrs.Nara was pleased because she kept quiet for the rest of the time that they sat at the dinner table.Shikamaru however,looked like he was going to beat up his father for not stopping his mother.The pink haired girl sighed as they had finished their meal.She began to pick up the empty plates from the table when Mr.Nara stopped her.

"If you don't want to get beaten by my wife,you better just leave them there."

His wife must've heard anyway since he was smacked on his hands with a wooden spoon.

"Thanks for appreciating me dear!You dump all the work on me and don't help me at all!"

'_(asd)What a weird couple…'_

After Shikamaru's mother was done complaining about her husband,she turned to Sakura and smiled.

"It's okay Sakura,my husband will be washing the dishes today."

Sakura nodded and ran upstairs to try and avoid being asked anymore questions.When she was at the top of the stairs,Shikamaru was there looking quite relieved.

"Your mother's very curious about me."

"I can't even believe that you made it past the questioning session.My mom has killed every single girl that has come through my front door with her stupid questions.Even Ino!"

Sakura beamed.

"I'm used to answering questions like that.I had to do a couple of interviews before.It's pretty much second nature."

"Looks like I was right.You are the perfect girlfriend."

He gave her a peck on the cheek and she beamed even more.But they were caught off guard as the doorbell rang.

"I wonder who it could be.I didn't invite anyone over or anything…"

The couple rushed downstairs and opened the door.

"Sa-Sasuke-kun?"

The boy in front of them was indeed the same raven haired boy who had been 'stalking' her when she was walking home.

"Yeah?"

Shikamaru could see the tension between the two and he stepped back,

"Looks like you guys can sort thing out on your own…heh…"

He went back inside the house and left the two alone outside.Sakura was about to protest against him speaking to her when he held a small envelope up.

"For you,Sakura.."

Sakura hesitated before taking the envelope.She tore it open and found a key in it.

"What's this?"

Sasuke looked at her annoyed.

"I guess that you're too stupid to recognize the key to your own house."

"Eh…"

She opened her mouth to speak,but shut it quickly.

'_Well at least he's not being mean.'_

Sasuke turned around to hop back in his car and drive away,but was stopped by Sakura.

"…Why,Sasuke nee-chan?"

He turned around and stared her down with his onyx eyes.

"Because…you're my enemy,but you were also my first friend and probably my last."

Then he smiled.It wasn't the same as the first time he smiled.This one showed the real Sasuke.The one that Sakura could confide in when she was troubled or could hang out with when she was bored.

'_I like Sasuke this way.He's actually being a gentlemen.'_

Sakura then headed back inside the Nara household.She told them that Sasuke had brought her an extra key to her condo so she didn't have to be a burden upon them any longer.When she stepped outside,Sasuke was still there and it began to rain again.

"Damn…I might have to stay here after all."

She stomped her foot on the ground aggravated and Sasuke just watched her.

"Hey,what are you doing?Are you trying to stall me or what,forehead?"

"Huh?"

"…Get in the car…"

Sasuke wanted to tell her that he liked her right then and there,but his pride didn't let him.His head kept on telling him,'I don't need her.I have Temari…'.But his heart kept on saying,'Go for it!Forget about pride!'

"Alright,I'll get in the car,but you can't call me forehead!"

"Fine,forehead girl."

Sakura tried to ignore his snide remark as she sat down in the passenger seat of his car.But as she sat down,a golden locket fell out of her pocket and fell open onto the floor of the car.Sakura desperately tried to pick it up off of the floor before Sasuke could see the picture but she was too late.He had already seen the picture.

"Who were those two people in the picture with you?"

Sakura was silent for a while.

"Those were my parents…"

Her parents had given her that locket when she was just a little child.It was around the same time when people started to pick on her for having a big forehead.It was also the time when her parents started going out on business trips and leaving her at home.

"I see…where are they now?"

Sakura was taken aback by Sasuke's interest in her personal life,but answered anyway.

"They're both out on business.It's pretty likely that they're not coming home for a long time."

Sasuke nodded like he understood.

"What about your parents,Sasuke nee-chan?"

Sasuke paused then said,"They're dead."

Sakura felt ashamed for asking him that question.

'_How stupid of me…'_

"So,you live with your brother now?"

"Yup.But he's only my half-brother.After my mother died,my father got married to some rich lady,who was obviously out for his money."

Sakura tried to lighten up the mood with a bright smile,but Sasuke wasn't phased by it.

"What the hell are you smiling for?"

"Oh…well,smiles cure everything.Including pain and dissapointment."

Sasuke looked even more weirdly at her,but continued their conversation.

"I don't even know why I'm talking to you.We're supposed to be mad at each other.We're enemies after all."

"Yeah,but we're only enemies because I kicked your ass at the arcade and took your title."

Sasuke looked at her with evil dripping with every word he said.

"I only let you win!"

"Really?That's why I beat you three times in a row?"

"That was a fluke!"

"I think that the proper word is 'skill',Sasuke-teme!"

"Don't call me that forehead girl!"

Sakura stopped glaring at him and frowned.

"Hey,what's wrong with you?"

Sakura stayed quiet.

"HEY!"

She kept silent in her seat.

"I'm sorry for calling you that,okay?But you never even told me why you were bothered by that."

"It's because…of my past."

Sakura didn't usually tell people about this,but she felt so relaxed around her 'concerned' enemy.

'_Looks like the saying,_'Keep your friends close and your enemies closer' _is right after all.'_

"Oh really,huh?"

"Yeah…I was teased as a kid and…no one was ever around to console me or even stand up for me.I didn't even make friends till I was in grade 3.I couldn't trust anyone enough."

"Well,I guess that we're pretty alike,considering that I hate you and all."

"Why?You were teased because you had a big forehead?"

Sasuke sighed before continuing.

"No.I was teased because my brother would overshadow me in everything I was in good in.It didn't matter if I had mastered something…because my brother would get the praise for it by doing it better than me and any other kid his age.After my father died,I just felt a little more relaxed that no one would be there to undermine me and force me to be more like my brother.Actually,my mother was the only one who ever cared about what I did."

Inner Sakura: (asd)What am I complaining about?I'm more better off than shadow boy over there.

"Why are you even talking to me about this,Sasuke?"

He shrugged.

"I guess because I needed to tell someone who actually had the guts to trust me in the first place."

"So are you saying that trusting you is a bad thing?"

"Not necessarily."

Then Sasuke smiled,'_So this is what it's like to have a real friend?It's pretty convenient…'_

"What are you smiling about?I didn't say anything…or are you just laughing at my forehead again?"

Inner Sakura: Baka teme!You're always laughing at my forehead!

"I'm not laughing at anything…you're so annoying."

Sakura glared at him.

"Why do you keep on saying that I'm annoying?"

"Because you are,okay?"

"No…I'm not."

Inner Sakura: How come when it seems like it's all good between us,he goes and makes it bad again?

"Uchiha Mikoto…"

Sasuke looked at her with surprise,

"H-how do you know my mother's name?"

"You mean your biological mother is Uchiha Mikoto?"

"…yeah…"

"She was an interviewer who started the Uchiha condos and had given them up to her husband.She was really nice."

"But…how did you know her?"

"Huh?Oh,she was a very close friend of mine.My mother used to know her when they were little."

"And did you know that she had two sons?"

"Nope…I only knew that she had one son until now.She always talked about him like he was the most precious thing in the world."

Sasuke was quiet for a while,but prodded further.

"Mother must've been talking about Itachi…"

Sakura smiled.

"Actually,Sasuke,she was talking about you.She would always talk about you trying your hardest to surpass your brother,when you really didn't have to."

"…Mother was always like that."

Sakura sighed after hearing Sasuke's comment.

"At least your mother cared about you.My mother…is another story."

Sakura opened her old locket and glanced at the picture once again.This time,she noticed something different about it.She squinted at her mother and she was talking on a cell phone.She wasn't even smiling.It was more like she was in the background while Sakura and her father were in the front.

'_My mother was so stupid for not even caring about me.I'm lucky that my father's still around…'_

Then she looked over at Sasuke who was concentrating on the driving.

'_So this is what it's like to be friends with a total jerk,huh?How interesting…'_

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**Author's note that I forgot to include when I updated so I'm including it now…**

Sakura calls Sasuke 'Sasuke nee-chan' as a joke because he called her that before((I forgot to write that Sasuke gets pissed about it)),so sorry if you got kind of confused with it.((you'd be surprised at how many times my guy friends scolded me for calling them 'big sister' because that's what they had called me when we were little)).

Aaaaaaaaaaaand…I haven't exactly been reading my reviews so I can't exactly answer them…but I promise that I'll get my friend to read it…cause I'm too lazy to (tee hee).

-shihna dojinshi-


	20. Chapter 20

**_1ST PLACE ISN'T EXACTLY THE BEST_**

**_-CHAPTER TWENTY-_**

_**Fireflies**_

"_At least your mother cared about you.My mother…is another story."_

_Sakura opened her old locket and glanced at the picture once again.This time,she noticed something different about it.She squinted at her mother and she was talking on a cell phone.She wasn't even smiling.It was more like she was in the background while Sakura and her father were in the front._

'_My mother was so stupid for not even caring about me.I'm lucky that my father's still around…'_

_Then she looked over at Sasuke who was concentrating on the driving._

'_So this is what it's like to be friends with a total jerk,huh?How interesting…'_

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**Before we begin…**

(sigh)More replies to reviews that I didn't read,but my editor did for me…

IsLandChIck3 and snakpak: the reason for Sakura calling Sasuke 'big sister' is on the author's note on the last chapter (yawns).I'll also try and include the reason why in this chapter too.

Little wolf blossom: Yes,Sakura was implying something.She was implying that her parents were different from before.I guess that I just forgot to underline it ((maybe I should wait for my editor to actually edit it before I update…tee hee)).

Phdsang:Maybe I'll make Sakura lose…maybe I won't.But thanks for your comments and such (yawns)((I'm tired right now,that's why I've been yawning for the longest time…actually,my editor's typing down my replies right now and she's typing in every time I yawn))(yawn)And Shikamaru's mom does rock!

LuCkY-SiZzA: Thanks for the review…and I'm updating right now,so there's no need to spaz out on me.

**!Let's begin the story!**

The rest of the car ride to Sakura's condo was very quiet.All that could be heard was the hum of the engine and the rain splashing on the windows.An occasional clap of thunder would run through the sky,but all was quiet between the two rivals.Then Sakura decided to strike up a conversation.

"Sasuke nee-chan?"

"Are you calling me big brother or big sister?"

"Sister…anyway-"

"Why are you calling me big sister!"

Sakura pouted.

"You should be happy!I always wanted a big sister."

Sasuke hit her on the head.

"Hey!No hitting girls!"

Sasuke grinned evilly.

"Why,aniki?"

"I'm not you're big brother!"

"Then don't call me your big sister!"

"Ugh…fine,Sasuke-teme."

"Don't call me that either!"

"Why not,huh?"

Sakura ruffled his hair and he almost went crazy.

"Don't touch my hair,aniki!"

Sakura ruffled his hair more.

"Then don't call me aniki!"

"I'm driving over here!"

Sakura hit him on the shoulder.

'_Why does he always have to ruin the moment with his stupid objections to everything?'_

Sakura slunk back in her seat and crossed her arms.Sasuke looked at her like she was a little kid.

"Why are you pouting?"

Sakura answered in her sugary sweet voice.

"Because you're a jerk."

"Well,you're annoying!"

"Am not!"

"You are too!"

They were still arguing when they got out of the car once the rain had stopped.

"Why do you hate me so much,Sasuke?"

"I don't exactly hate you,I just dislike you a lot."

"Disliking me a lot is basically the equivalent to hating me!"

"Just forget it…"

It was silent for a while until Sakura saw a bunch of fireflies flying around both of them.She felt very uncomfortable since a lot of people were staring at them like they were the couple of the year.Then Sakura stopped and Sasuke looked at her annoyed.

"Hey,don't you want to get back inside your condo."

Sakura shook her head.

"Why don't we stay out here for a while?It's pretty cool out here with the fireflies."

Sasuke's lightened up a bit at Sakura's offer.

"Fine…but don't blame me if you lose your key again!"

They found a dry patch of grass underneath a tree near the condo bulding.Both of them were just watching the fireflies fly past them when Sasuke began to speak.

"I don't even know why we're going to do this competition thing.It's so stupid."

Sakura closed her eyes and thought about it for a while.Sasuke waited patiently for her answer,but it never came.

"Sakura?Are you okay?"

The pink haired girl's head fell onto his shoulder and chills were sent up his spine.

"Sakura?Sakura!"

A soft snore escaped her lips…which signified that she was now asleep.

Sasuke was entirely panicking,_' (asd )What am I going to do now that she's sleeping?'_

Sasuke sat there for a while and just watched her sleep on his shoulder.

'_She looks pretty cute when she's like this…'_

He waited a bit before he gently picked her up and carried her bridal-style to her condo.

'_I'm so stupid for actually letting her fall asleep.At least she's not that heavy…'_

He struggled a bit with the door as he unlocked it and pushed it open.

'_Note to self: Do not offer to drive Sakura home ever again.'_

Sasuke sighed as he laid her down on the nearby couch and covered her with a blanket.As he turned around to walk out the door,Sakura began to speak.

"Mm…sa…Sasuke-kun…don't…mmm…go…"

"WHAT!I thought you were-"

Sasuke was interrupted by a soft snore from Sakura.

'_Oh…she's probably dreaming…'_

He listened for a bit longer.

"We're…best…friends…right?"

_What the hell is she dreaming about?'_

The sleep talking ceased and Sasuke sighed.

"You're so annoying…"

The raven haired boy blushed as he leaned over and kissed her on the forehead.He opened the door and locked it before he left.

**The next morning…**

Sakura awoke to find herself back in her living room.

"Wha…what happened?"

Then she remembered sitting outside with Sasuke and her falling asleep.She blushed at the thought of falling asleep right in front of her enemy.

"Silly me…"

Suddenly,Sakura remembered that she had a dream about the day that she was to face off against Sasuke.

"Why did I dream about that?"

-Why did you even dream about Sasuke?-

"Oh be quiet.I've had weirder dreams.Remember that one where Sasuke was wearing this big hat and he wouldn't stop laughing at me."

-And there was the one where you were buck naked in the mall and Sasuke was there.-

Sakura blushed and her face matched the color of her hair.

"I did not have a dream about that!"

-Whatever…-

Sakura got up from the couch and changed out of her clothes.

-Where are we going?-

"It's Sunday.I'm going to go meet up with my friends at the mall!"

Sakura hopped into the shower before brushing her teeth and changing.By the time she was out the door,it was already noon.

**At the mall…**

"Hey Sakura-chan!I didn't know that you were coming!"

All of her friends approached her as she neared the food court.

"Hey,Ino-chan,hey TenTen-chan.Where's everyone else?"

"They're over there near the taco place thing."

Ino pointed out a table where Naruto,Hinata,Neji,Rock lee and Shikamaru where seated.Sakura waved at them as she walked her way towards the table.

"Hey Sakura-koi.You feeling better or what?"

"Yup.I'm okay now."

"Really?You still seemed a bit sick when you were at my house yesterday,"

"I'm fine.Don't worry about me."

Sakura gave Shikamaru a convincing smile and he stopped nagging her.

"So,Sakura-chan.I heard that you went home in Sasuke-kun's car!"

Sakura glared at Ino.

"What about it?"

Ino grinned at her mischievously.

"Come on!Sasuke-kun's the cutest guy in the whole entire school!"

Sakura stared at her blonde friend clueless-ly.

"…soooo?"

"DID YOU KISS HIM OR NOT!"

Everyone's heads turned to Naruto,who had just shouted out a very stupid question.Sakura hit him on the head.

"Naruto you baka!I have a boyfriend!"

Hinata glared at Naruto.

"Naruto-kun!You don't go around making girls angry!"

Naruto cowered under his girlfriend's glare.

"Hi-Hinata-chan.Gomen…"

"Now apologize to Sakura-chan."

"…gomen Sakura-chan…"

Every single person near Naruto laughed at his only weakness - his pregnant girlfriend.


	21. Chapter 21

**_1ST PLACE ISN'T EXACTLY THE BEST_**

**_-CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE-_**

_**Sakura's decision**_

"_Naruto you baka!I have a boyfriend!"_

_Hinata glared at Naruto._

"_Naruto-kun!You don't go around making girls angry!"_

_Naruto cowered under his girlfriend's glare._

"_Hi-Hinata-chan.Gomen…"_

"_Now apologize to Sakura-chan."_

"…_gomen Sakura-chan…"_

_Every single person near Naruto laughed at his only weakness - his pregnant girlfriend._

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Sakura ruffled Naruto's hair playfully.

"It's okay Naruto-kun.As long as Hinata-chan doesn't mind me hitting you."

Everyone took a seat at the table as Naruto got beaten up by every girl within a ten foot radius.Just as Sakura sat down,Ino lifted her up off of her chair and dragged her away from the distracted group.Sakura forced Ino off her arm and looked at her confused.

"What is it,Ino-chan?"

Ino shifted her eyes to the right and to the left continually before she spoke.

"You have to tell me how you do it?"

A large sweat drop formed at the back of Sakura's head.

"Do…what…Ino-chan?"

Ino began to get irritated and tapped her foot impatiently.

"You know…!"

Sakura scratched the back of her head.

"No…I don't…"

"HOW DO YOU GET SASUKE-KUN TO BECOME YOUR BEST FRIEND!"

Almost every person in the mall had violently turned their heads to look at Ino.Ino was flushed and Sakura could've looked at her like she was crazy.

"Why do you want to be friends with Sasuke?"

Ino's voice was barely a whisper.

"Because I like him.Remember?"

"Yeah…but…"

Sakura was very confused.She couldn't really understand why her blonde friend would like a jerk like Sasuke.Sure…he was nice to look at,but his personality was quite flawed and he had the vocab of a bean,at least it seemed that way.But then,she could relate with her friend on so many different levels since she did used to like Sasuke….unless she still did now…

"But what?I like Sasuke and you shouldn't be allowed to hog all of him!"

"What are you talking about!Me and Sasuke-kun are just-"

"Friends?"

Sakura nodded.

"Well,there's no such things as guys and girls just being friends.There has to be some chemistry behind it all."

Sakura pondered Ino's statement as her friend walked back to the table defeated.

'_She…she's right.'_

The pink haired girl's head hung low as she made her way to the table again.Then she jumped as someone's hand rested on her shoulder.

"Hey,Sakura-chan."

She turned around and saw Sasuke.He didn't have his hostile look on today,but instead,he had the look of a lazy slacker.But there was something different in the way he looked and the way he carried himself.

"Sasuke-kun!Don't scare me like that!"

She hit him on the head and he shrugged it off.

'_That's weird…he would've started an argument by now!'_

Sakura inspected Sasuke briefly and found that he had a look of absentness shinning in his onyx eyes.She waved a hand in his face to try and catch his attention.

"Sasuke-kuuuuuuuuun!"

"Yes,Haruno Sakura?"

Sakura became aggravated.

She slapped him across the face and that seemed to wake him up.

"What was that for!"

"Because you were scaring me!"

"Were you that worried about me?"

"Stop being such a tease!Of course I'm worried if my best friend is acting all weird!"

Butterflies were fluttering in Sasuke's stomach at the mention of him being Sakura's best friend.

"I'm you're-"

"Best friend?Of course!"

Sakura smiled at him and his head started spinning.

'_What the hell is wrong with me?Sakura's just a girl!'_((Sasuke talking to himself.))

Sasuke's eyes redeemed their glazed look and Sakura cocked her head to the side as she smiled.

"You look so cute when you're acting stupid!"

She pinched his cheek harshly,but Sasuke didn't react.He was too busy 'acting stupid' to notice that his cheek was turning a very deep red where Sakura had pinched him.It was only when Sakura ruffled his hair did he advert back to his normal self.

"I told you not to touch my hair!"

"Well…you were scaring me again!"

"Hn…"

Sakura glared at him.

"Why are you here anyway?"

"Because I wanted to give you this."

The raven haired boy pulled his hand out of his jacket pocket and held up Sakura's locket.

"How…did you get this?"

Sasuke blushed as he told her how she had lost it when she fell asleep on his shoulder.

"Oh…thanks."

Inner Sakura: Boy do I look stupid!"

She took the locket from Sasuke's palm and instead of putting it in her pocket,she wore it around her neck.

"So…do you want to go get some ice cream?"

Sakura hesitated.She looked back at the table where her friends were.They were too distracted to notice her with Sasuke.

"Uhh…sure."

They both walked to the nearby ice cream parlor and Sasuke sat down as Sakura made her way toward the counter to buy their ice cream.

'_It's so typical for Sasuke to order something weird like 'green tea ice cream.'_

-That's what you get for being friends with a psychopath!"

'_(chuckle)Yup!"_

When she reached the counter,the owner asked her what she wanted.

"Hm…I'll have a strawberry ice cream and a rocky road."

-I hope you're satisfied with yourself.Sasuke will probably start bitching when he sees that you ordered something different.-

'_Oh calm down!'_

When the owner gave her two bowlfuls of ice cream,Sakura took them and set them down on their table.Sakura instantly started eating her ice cream and Sasuke just stared at his,wondering how this was his green tea ice cream.

"Hey,pinky.Are you sure that this is what I ordered."

Sakura looked up at him with a grin.

"Well,green tea ice cream is for senile people,so I thought that you'd like rocky road."

Sasuke glared at the simple minded pink haired girl in front of him.

"Do I look senile to you,Sakura?"

"Nope."

"Then why didn't you get my green tea ice cream!"

Sakura pouted.

"Well,Sasuke nii-chan…there are more better flavors then green tea."

Sasuke was not fazed by her pouting like he was last time and glared at her more viciously.

"Oh here,come on!Try it!"

Sakura attempted to try and force feed Sasuke,but to no avail.

"Sasuke-kun!Stop being so difficult!"

Sakura leaned over to cram the spoon of ice cream down his throat,and then an idea struck her.Finally,as a last resort,she put a spoonful of ice cream in her mouth and leaned over to Sasuke.Their lips had come in contact and Sasuke was turning very red as the seconds passed by.When Sakura pulled away,Sasuke was already the color of her hair and a faint taste of rocky road had remained in his mouth.He was now satisfied with himself.

"There.You see?Isn't rocky road good?"

Sasuke grinned.

"But don't you dare get the wrong ideas,Uchiha Sasuke."

Sakura chuckled as she got back to eating her strawberry ice cream.

Sasuke was still blushing as he picked up the spoon and started eating his new-found favorite flavor of ice cream.

"Hey…calm down!"

Sasuke was wolfing his ice cream down a little too fast and got a brain freeze.He clutched the side if his head and massaged it while Sakura just sat there laughing.

"What are you laughing at?"

"Oh…nothing,Sasuke-kun."

Sakura waited until Sasuke stopped massaging his head before she spoke.

"I've been thinking,Sasuke-kun."

"Hn."

"We're friends,right?"

Sasuke nodded absentmindedly.

"So it won't matter who we pick when either of us wins at the little competition thing,right?"

If Sasuke was very worried,his facial expression didn't show it.

"What do you mean 'if either of us wins'?I'm obviously going to win!"

Sakura glared at him.

"Sasuke!Be serious!"

"I am!"

"But if you're serious,how come I can tell that you're going to burst out laughing anytime?"

"I am not going to laugh!"

Sakura sighed.

"Never mind Sasuke-kunJust promise me that we'll still be friends!"

Sasuke hesitated.

"I don't make any promises!"

"Fine you jerk!"

"You're so annoying."

Sakura sat up from the table and stormed off,but not before she sucker-punched Sasuke.

…

'_Sasuke's such a jerk!'_

-He definitely is!-

'_After all this time that we were friends!'_

-Yeah!-

Sakura had finally located her friends near the mall's fountain.When she took her normal seat beside Shikamaru,everyone looked at her weird.

"Where were you,Sakura-chan?"

"Oh,I just had to go to the washroom,Naruto-kun."

Even though Naruto had heard her answer,he prodded further.

"For what?"

Sakura hit him on the head.

"It's none of your business!"

"Naruto-kun!You shouldn't ask girls why they go to the washroom!"

"…gomen Hinata-koi…"

Hinata smiled at her boyfriend.

"Now apologize to Sakura-chan."

Naruto turned to Sakura.

"Gomen Sakura-chan."

"Thank you Naruto-kun."

Sakura ruffled the blonde boy's hair.Then Ino turned to her.

"Are you going to tell me or what?"

Sakura paused.

"Yeah,I will."

Inner Sakura: Who would want that stupid jerk besides Ino and Temari anyway?

Ino smiled mischievously.

"You're the best Sakura-chan!"

Ino caught Sakura in a tight embrace as she danced around.

'_Hey,at least Sasuke'll stop being an ass with Ino around to annoy him!'_


	22. Chapter 22

**_1ST PLACE ISN'T EXACTLY THE BEST_**

**_-CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO-_**

_**Counting down the days…**_

"_Yeah,I will."_

_Inner Sakura: Who would want that stupid jerk besides Ino and Temari anyway?_

_Ino smiled mischievously._

"_You're the best Sakura-chan!"_

_Ino caught Sakura in a tight embrace as she danced around._

'_Hey,at least Sasuke'll stop being an ass with Ino around to annoy him!_

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"Ino-chan!Don't tell me that you're going to wimp out now!"

"I…I can't do it!"

Sakura slapped her friend on the head.

"We've been prepping for two whole days!Don't tell me that my effort was in vain!"

Ino gulped loudly and started wringing her hands.

"Okay…I won't."

When Sakura accepted Ino's request,she didn't expect her friend to be acting so gutless.They were hiding behind a corner in the school hallway and Sasuke was standing right in front of them.Sakura attempted to push Ino out in the open.

"Hey!Stop pushing!Sasuke-kun might actually see us!"

Sakura doubled her efforts.

"That's the point you spineless swine!"

With a final push,Ino had been forced out of hiding and Sasuke had taken notice of her.

"…This better work..."

Sakura watched silently as Ino approached the obviously annoyed raven haired boy and struck up a conversation.All seemed to be going well,until Temari appeared.Temari had slapped Ino and Ino came back with a punch to the gut.Sasuke just stood there in an effort to not be noticed at all.Sakura had slunk back on the wall,slapping her forehead.

'_Mission…not so complete.'_

-What made you think that it would work in the first place?-

Then,Naruto came skipping into the hall with his very cheery smile.Then all hope for him was lost when the devastated Ino spotted him.

"Naruto you baka teme!You ruined everything!"

"What?What did I ruin?"

Sakura slapped her forehead again as she watched Ino tear the poor,benign Naruto apart.

"Hey…Sakura-chan."

Sakura saw Sasuke as he approached her from across the hall.

"Poor attempt of getting me to befriend Ino."

He pointed at the fuming Ino who was smacking Naruto to kingdom come.

"(sigh) At least I tried."

Sasuke just laughed as he made his way down the hall.

"Two more days,Sakura nee-chan,two more days."

Sakura punched the wall aggravated.

'_Baka Sasuke-kun…he didn't even apologize from before!'_

"Why are you so mad at the wall for?"

Sakura turned around and saw the disheveled Naruto.

"Eh…no reason.Did Ino give you a beating again?"

Naruto nodded and rubbed a large bruise on his arm.

"For an overgrown pig,she sure can punch…"

Sakura chuckled and headed to their homeroom with Naruto.It was a weird school day since they weren't doing anything in class at all.All their teacher did was pour over his 'Itcha Itcha Paradise' books and chuckle as he turned the pages.While everyone was sleeping in class or wandering around,Sakura watched Sasuke and Temari from the corner of her eye.They were both talking,but their voices were barely audible.

**Temari and Sasuke's conversation…**

"Why not Sasuke-kun!"

Temari was whining about some insignificant detail.

"I said no!"

Temari was close to tears.

"Why don't you want to dance with me at the school dance?"

Sasuke sighed and glared at her with his ice cold eyes.

"Because I don't want to!"

"I bet that you want to go dance with that baka Sakura girl!"

"It's not like that!"

"Then what is it like,Uchiha Sasuke-kun?"

Sasuke needed to end this conversation quick before someone would overhear what they were saying.

"Maybe I will go on ahead and ask that baka Sakura!"

"But Sasuke-"

"But if you're quiet,I won't.Got it?"

Temari nodded anxiously and finally shut her mouth.

…

Sakura was watching the arguing couple with anxiety.She could just tell that Sasuke and Temari were talking bad about her.

' _What did I ever do to get myself on Sasuke's bad side?'_

-Hellooooo!You became friends with him!-

'_Hardy-har-har…'_

Sakura sat upright in her chair as Sasuke and Temari passed by.Temari stuck her tongue out at her and Sasuke avoided eye contact with her whatsoever.

"Sakura-chan?Are you listening?"

The pink haired girl spun around to see that her blonde seatmate was looking at her through narrowed eyes.

"Uh…yeah."

"Then what did I say?"

"Why?You weren't listening either?"

"Hahaha,Sakura-chan."

Naruto continued their conversation further as Sakura waited for the final bell to ring so she could get home.

'_Come on…come on!'_

The end of the day was her last chance to get Ino off her back about getting her and Sasuke together.

-Personally,I never wanted to get involved with Ino's diabolical plans to get Sasuke within ten feet of her.-

'_Oh hush!Ino-chan's got her good traits…and good uses!'_

-Hm…good point!-

Just as Naruto had wrapped up his mini lecture on the carbs in ramen,the bell rang and Sakura sprang up from her seat as she slung her already-packed bag over her shoulder.

'_I hope Ino's in a cheery mood.Sasuke will be putty in her hands once I get the finer points of my plan down.'_

-If you say so…-

Sakura dashed over to Ino and forced her to accompany her while she talked to Sasuke.

"But Sakura-chan I can't!"

"Of course you can!"

Ino stomped her foot on the ground impatiently.

"Sakura-chan!I'm going to cry right here,right now and cause a scene!"

"Don't!"

Ino took in a deep breath and got the wind knocked out of her by Sakura.

"You idiot…I guess blondes are dumber sometimes!"((no offense meant to blondes…heh heh…))

Sakura dragged her blonde friend by the arm to where Sasuke was.

"Sakura-chan!I-"

"HUSH!"

The pink haired girl hit her companion on the back of the head as they approached the unaware Sasuke.

"Hey Sasuke-kun!"

Sasuke turned around to see the cheerful Sakura trying desperately to shut Ino up and at the same time,try to get him to talk

"Hn…"

"You know Ino-chan,right?"

Sasuke nodded as he glared at Ino.

"You make me sick,Ino."

Ino froze up.

"Yuh-You…don't mean that Sasuke-kun!"

"Yup,I do,Ino."

Ino's eyes started accumulating tears as the seconds passed.Sakura hit Sasuke on the head.

"You are so insensitive Sasuke-teme!"

Sakura glared at the raven haired boy as he rubbed the area in which Sakura had hit.

"I hate you Haruno…"

"Thank you!Now apologize to Ino."

Sasuke refused to apologize to some 'overgrown pig'.Ino burst into tears and Sakura attempted to comfort her sobbing friend.

"Sasuke nii-chan!"

"Don't call me that!"

Sakura answered back defiantly with anger seeping from every word.

"Why not?"

Sasuke looked at her more irritated than ever.

"Because I don't have any brothers or sisters and we were never friends!"

Sakura's eyes expanded in shock at Sasuke's answer.

"Sa-Sasuke…-kun."

Sasuke had noticed that he had finally broke the mental wall of power that was Sakura's feelings.Sakura held onto her right arm as she looked down at her shoes.

"Sakura…I'm sorry I said that it's just-"

"No…no.I guess that we weren't friends in the first place anyway…"

Sakura's voice was hoarse and she sounded like she was on the verge of tears.She grabbed Ino's arm and dragged her away as she fought back the urge to cry.

-He's such a lowlife jerk!-

'_(sigh) Yeah,he was…'_

"Sakura-chaaaaaaaaaaaan!"

Sakura stopped in her tracks as she saw Sasuke running to catch up to them.

"Sasuke,stop it."

Sasuke had grabbed her hand in his as Ino ran away terrified.

"Huh?No more calling me 'Sasuke-kun'?"

Sakura's emerald eyes dug into his skin.

"We were never friends,I can recall that you said that just a couple of seconds ago."

Sasuke held onto her hand more tightly.

"Oh come on…I didn't mean it!"

"Yeah,right."

Sakura tried to pry her hand form his,but he kept on being persistent.

"Hey,come on.Look at me."

The pink haired girl kept her head bowed down as they stood face-to-face.Sasuke was very determined to get Sakura's attention.

"Hey,come on!I'm sorry…"

The 'human ice cube' was quite shocked himself by his abnormal actions.He never apologized to any regular person in his life and he was never really loud and talkative around anyone.

"Leave me alone,Uchiha."

Sasuke cupped her chin in his hand and forced Sakura to look up at him.He was looking at her with a grin and she couldn't help but hit him upside the head.

"Why are you so violent for?"

Sakura just walked away as the very confused Sasuke tried to ease the pain on his head.

…

"I mean like,why does he have to annoy me like that,Shika-kun?"

"I don't know."

"I'm lucky that your walking me home today.I could've sworn that he was going to stalk me or something."

Sakura looked over at the smiling Shikamaru.

"Well,if he was stalking you,I would've beat him up for you anyway."

Sakura leaned over and gave Shikamaru a little peck on the cheek.

"Thanks Shika-kun."

Her boyfriend nodded and waved goodbye as Sakura opened the door to her suite.

"Two more days…just two more days…"


	23. Chapter 23

**_1ST PLACE ISN'T EXACTLY THE BEST_**

**_-CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE-_**

_**The Dance**_

Sakura looked over at the smiling Shikamaru.

"Well,if he was stalking you,I would've beat him up for you anyway."

Sakura leaned over and gave Shikamaru a little peck on the cheek.

"Thanks Shika-kun."

Her boyfriend nodded and waved goodbye as Sakura opened the door to her suite.

"Two more days…just two more days…"

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During the two days leading to up to the dance,Sakura did not talk to Sasuke once.During that period of time though,her relationship with Shikamaru blossomed.Sasuke also grew closer to Temari,even though he would regret it later.Before the dance,Sakura had been asked out by almost every guy in the school.She had turned down every person who asked though.But not because she had Shikamaru,it was mainly because Sakura was secretly wishing that Sasuke would ask her.Sakura tried to push the thought out of her head as she concentrated more on her work.

The evening of the dance,Sakura had made her way to the gym with a bright pink silk dress on with cherry blossoms scattered all over it.She blushed heavily as a crowd of boys had tried to hassle her for a dance before she pushed the gym doors open.All eyes were on her as he friends walked over to her.

"Sukooooora-chaaaan!Yuh look…er…wunnerful!"

Sakura looked over at the drunk Naruto who had obviously snuck sake into the gym.She slapped him silly,along with TenTen and Ino.Hinata was blushing at her boyfriend's goofy behavior.

"Nar-Naruto-k-kun!D-don't drink too much!"

"Soooor,'Nata-chun!"(sure,Hinata-chan.)

Everyone laughed at Naruto's attempt to stop the slurring of his words.After a while,Naruto collapsed and Hinata sat Naruto down in a chair as Sakura made her way over to Shikamaru at the punch bowl.He smiled sweetly as Sakura took the cup of punch he offered her.

"You look beautiful Sakura-koi!A lot of people are looking at you!"

'A lot of people' was an understatement.The whole gym was probably watching her by now.

"Oh..please,Shika-kun…"

Sakura could see even Sasuke watching her in the corner of her eye.

'_Stupid jerk!Eat your heart out!'_

She could also see Temari,who was wearing a bright yellow strapless dress that matched her blonde hair.Then Sakura frowned.Temari was slapping Sasuke senseless and he looked completely helpless.

"It's probably a fight over Sasuke not getting her roses o something."

She nodded at Shikamaru's comment.

'_I don't know if he deserves this…'_

Then,slow music started playing.Shikamaru just stood near the punch bowl looking eagerly over at the couples already on the dance floor.

-Looks like Shikamaru's waiting for you to ask him to dance.-

'_Alright…I'll ask him already!'_

"Hey,Shika-kun?You wanna dance?"

Shikamaru gulped down a healthy amount of punch before he wrapped his arms around her waist.All was peaceful between the two until the music ended.Sakura seemed disappointed at Shikamaru's 'dancing skills',but Shikamaru looked rather relieved.

"Hey,Shika-kun?"

"Yeah,Sakura-koi?"

"I have to make my decision by tomorrow."

Shikamaru's eyes expanded in shock.

"You didn't even decide yet?"

Sakura scratched the back of her head nervously as she nodded her head no.

"Sakura!"

She attempted to quiet her boyfriend before Sasuke or Temari had ever heard about her hesitations between picking her boyfriend and picking her enemy.

"I'm sorry,Shika-kun.But I just don't want to disappoint anyone!"

Sakura's boyfriend fell into deep thought as he stroked his chin.Finally,he had come to her with a conclusion after what seemed like the tenth song that had played.

"Sakura-koi…I have come to a conclusion."

"Finally you baka!You should keep a lady-"

"Ino!SHHH!"

Sakura covered Ino's mouth in an attempt to shut up her friend.

"What is it Shika-kun?"

"If you pick me,I'll be happy for us…but if you pick him…,"Shikamaru shot an evil look in Sasuke's direction before continuing,"I'll be happy for you."

"Thanks,Shika-kun."

Then,TenTen had burst into their conversation with an announcement.

"They're going to play the last song!"

Sakura looked at her friend weirdly.

"…So?"

TenTen sighed.

"Never mind…"

Sakura turned around and found Sasuke right in front of her.She jumped slightly as he stood there,staring at her.

"Sasuke-kun!Uh…what are you doing here?"

Sasuke scratched the back of his head nervously as Sakura looked at him with utmost confusion.Finally,he spat out his reply.

"Will you dance with…me?"

Sakura smiled,but quickly tried to hide it.

"Sure…Sasuke-kun…"

"Hey!It's….urm…Susoooooookay!"

"What's up,dobe?"

Naruto had just tumbled onto the scene with a bottle of sake.

"Urmf…Noffink!"

He chugged the bottle heartily and hiccoughed as Hinata took him away.

"Bye…Sasura-teme!"

"(asd) Do you want to go dance now,Sakura-chan?"

"Sure…"

Sakura took Sasuke's outstretched hand as he led her onto the dance floor.They were standing in the middle of the dance floor for a while until Sasuke had leaned over to whisper something in her ear.

"Uhh…Sakura-chan?"

"Yup?"

"I…don't know how to lead…"

'_(asd) Just great.'_

Sakura smiled with the pleasure of dominance over Sasuke.

"Alright then,I'll lead."

Sakura placed her hands on Sasuke's shoulders firmly and he planted his hands on her waist.The music began playing and Sakura found herself smiling.

'_What am I doing?'_

Sasuke was smiling too as they both stared into each other's eyes.

"You look really beautiful."

Sakura slipped out of her trance and tried to maintain a calm demeanor.

"Oh…thanks,Sasuke-kun.You look so cute too."

She smiled playfully and he drew her closer to him.

'_What is Sasuke doing?'_

They were dancing in a tight embrace for what seemed like forever.Sakura couldn't help but rediscover her feelings for Sasuke and he found that he couldn't like anyone more than her.

"…Sasuke-kun?"

"Huh?"

"Why…do you like Temari…and not…someone else?"

Sasuke had a blank look on his face as Sakura laid her head on his shoulder.

"To tell you the truth,I don't really know."

"Oh…"

Sasuke paused.

"Why?Who would you want me to like?"

His pink haired companion stayed silent.

"Sakura-chan?"

Sakura smiled at him convincingly.

"I expected you to like..."

Sasuke waited with anxiety.

"I expected you to like Ino-chan!"

"(asd) Oh really?"

The pink haired girl smiled again.

"Of course!"

The music stopped and Sakura immediately let go of Sasuke as she looked at him in the eye.

"Sakura-chan?"

"…Uh-huh?"

"I have to talk to you."

Sakura gulped as they both made their way to the table with a large bowl of punch placed in the center.

"What is it Sasuke-kun?"

It was her friend's turn to gulp and act all nervous.

"I really like someone,but I don't want to tell her though."

"So…what are you going to do?"

Sasuke smirked.

"Well,actually,I was supposed to dance with her at a dance;and I was supposed to kiss her..."

'_I know where this is going!'_

It was silent between the two until Sasuke leaned over to Sakura and Sakura panicked,as usual.

Her hand slipped and it tipped the punch bowl.The red liquid splashed all over her and she gasped as the punch soaked the fabric of her pink dress..Sasuke just blinked confusedly and Temari started laughing.

"Nice job,my dear Sasuke-kun!"

Temari made her way over to Sasuke and hugged him.Sakura looked at him with bewilderment.

"What?"

Sasuke's girlfriend smirked.

"Well,Sasuke-kun was in on my little plan to ruin your your dress was just a bonus!"

"SASUKE!"

The cherry blossom dress was an old one of her mother's and her mother gave it to her before she started getting busy with business.

Temari was cackling and Sasuke looked like he was double-crossed.Sakura,however,was fuming.

"Sasuke you teme!I loved this dress!...I never thought that you'd do this to me."

"But Sakura,I-"

"I can't even believe that I actually pitied you because you were getting slapped up by Temari!"

Sasuke sighed as Sakura gave him a punch to the face and stormed away.

"I really did like you,Sakura!"

It was too late,since Sakura was already out the door,and out of his life.

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Author's note…

I know that it's taken so long just to get this stupid chapter out…but I've been so busy ever since classes started again!Plus my editor's been busy with school too,and it's more harder for her since she's just in elementary((hey,she's pretty smart for an eighter.But it's kinda weird that I have an elementary student doing a niner's editing)) and her teacher's an ass((tee hee)).I'll try and update soooooooooooon!

-Shihna Dojinshi-


	24. Chapter 24

**_1ST PLACE ISN'T EXACTLY THE BEST_**

**_-CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR-_**

_**The end result…**_

_Temari was cackling and Sasuke looked like he was double-crossed.Sakura,however,was fuming._

"_Sasuke you teme!I loved this dress!...I never thought that you'd do this to me."_

"_But Sakura,I-"_

"_I can't even believe that I actually pitied you because you were getting slapped up by Temari!"_

_Sasuke sighed as Sakura gave him a punch to the face and stormed away._

"_I really did like you,Sakura!"_

_It was too late,since Sakura was already out the door,and out of his life._

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"Are you sure you want to do this,Sakura?I mean,it's not like you'll choose Sasuke when you win."

Sakura was walking fast-paced to the arcade.Shikamaru tried to use his words as a means to stop his determined girlfriend.

"But…I need to win this."

Sakura was wearing her oversized cap and clothes that she had worn when she was acting like a boy.

"Who cares!We all already know that you're the best!"

"Well,Sasuke needs to know it too."

Sakura pushed past Shikamaru who had stood in her way.

"Sakuuuura-koi!"

Sakura walked even faster and took longer strides as her pink hair whipped in Shikamaru's face.Soon enough,Shikamaru had stopped trying to persuade Sakura and just walked silently behind her.As they neared the arcade,Shikamaru went deep into thought.

"Hey…why are you dressed up in guy's clothes again?"

Sakura had replied without even grinning.

"I have my reasons."

Sakura and Shikamaru made their way to the bar where a whole crowd was waiting to watch Sasuke and Sakura battle it out.

"Hey,Sakura-chan…"

Sakura saw Naruto approach her with an icepack on his head.

"What's wrong with you,Naruto-kun?"

"Ugh…too much…sake."

Hinata came up to him and helped sit him into a chair at a table where Lee was already sitting.

"Good going Naruto."

Sakura's classmates Shino and Kiba were there also.

"Eh…is that you,Kiba?"

Naruto tried to squint at Kiba and Shino as they sat down at their table.

"Yup.It's me and Shino."

"I see…"

Naruto took out a bottle of sake and drank from it.((tee hee.Naruto's like an alcoholic now…))

"No more sake for you Naruto-kun!"

Hinata snatched the bottle away as Ino and TenTen made their way over.They looked at Sakura's clothes with disgust.

"What happened to you,Haruno?"

Sakura stayed silent as TenTen hit Ino.

"Don't be like that to Sakura-chan!"

Then,Sakura caught a glimpse of where Sasuke and Temari were sitting.They were at the table all across the room and Temari was trying to get Sasuke to kiss her.

"It's going to start in about 10 minutes.You wanna go prep for it?"

TenTen had offered to go play shooting games with her and Lee asked her if she wanted to play ddr.Sakura accepted their challenges and had already beaten every single one of her friends in a game

"We're done prepping already,so can we stop playing ddr,Naruto-kun?"

Even though Naruto had a splitting headache,he had challenged Sakura to almost every game in the arcade twice and the build-up of people became overwhelming.

"Yeah…sure…"

"Ooooo!Look Sakura-chan!Look how many people are following you now!"

Ino indicated the crowd of people that was behind her.

"There's always some kind of crowd following me.I'm used to it."

Ino looked at her concerned.

"If your words sound so happy,how come the way you say them is so dead and monotone-ish?"

Sakura shrugged and went back to their table.

"Hey!We're starting over here forehead girl!"

Temari waved over at Sakura and she sat up form her chair.

"Good luck Sakura-chan!"

Ino was cheering as Sakura made her way over to Sasuke's table.

"Yeah!Don't let him beat you!"

Naruto was giving her the thumbs-up.

"That's right!He's a total jerk!"

TenTen and Hinata were yelling at the top of their lungs.

"…Thanks guys."

Inner Sakura: Do they know how to shut up or what?

As Sakura sat down at Temari's table,Sasuke immediately looked at her.Sakura however,refused to look at him.Temari caught Sasuke staring and immediately slapped him silly.

"Sasuke-kun!No looking at guys!"

Sakura growled and Temari stared at her with the essence of evil in her eyes.

"Look,the game that you'll play will have to be…"

Temari skimmed the games and her eyes finally rested on one.

"You'll play dsr!"

"(asd) You mean ddr?"

Temari slapped Sasuke as she crossed her arms.

"Whatever.Just don't correct me!"

Sasuke rubbed his cheek softly as Sakura looked at him with a concerned look.

"Aww…is poor Sasuke-kun okay?Why don't I give you something for your cheek?"

Sasuke had been expecting a kiss,but instead,Sakura's fist collided with his already red cheek.

"Ow!"

Sakura smiled contently and stepped onto the platform.

"You ready to lose,Haruno?"

"…"

The game had started and both enemies had a look of great concentration.Sakura was executing the commands with ease while Sasuke was struggling a bit as the steps poured onto the screen.Sakura was smirking as she looked over at Sasuke.He had already missed two steps and was on the verge of missing even more.

"I guess that you should have trained harder,Uchiha."

"Guh…shut up Haruno!"

Sasuke struggled to keep up a conversation with Sakura while concentrating at the same time.

'_Why's Sasuke-kun so mean to me?'_

-Shut up and just concentrate!-

Sakura missed two steps.

'_I'm serious,really.Why's he so mad at me?'_

-Don't know.-

Sakura missed even more steps.

-Concentrate Sakura!-

'_I…am!'_

Sasuke had already caught up to her speed and was grinning stupidly.

'_(sigh) It's no use…'_

Sakura stopped stepping and Sasuke took the last minutes of commands to bring up his score.The pink haired girl stared blankly into the screen in front of her.It read, _'player one - 80 and player 2 - 79'._

"I-I…lost."

"Hey Haruno!You actually lost to that punk?"

The cap fell off Sakura's head as she fell onto her knees.Her messy hair covered her face as tears fell down her pale cheeks.

"Sakura!I can't believe you lost!"

Naruto knelt beside her and she looked up at him.

"I'm so mad at you for losing!How could you lose to a jerk?"

Sakura sniffled as she shed the oversized clothing.Her favorite jacket covered her white tank top and her skirt was folded under her knees.

"Hey!Come on!Why'd you lose?"

Sakura wiped away her tears and smiled at Naruto.

"Sorry Naruto nii-chan…but I thought that you had a hangover."

Naruto grinned.

"Apparently,Ino knew a recipe to help get rid of a hangover.You'd be surprised at how many times she got drunk!"

She gave a little chuckle and Naruto helped her up.

"Sake,anyone?"

Naruto pulled out a bottle and Sakura hit him upside the head.

"Naruto!"

"I want one you idiot!"

Temari pushed Sakura over and grabbed the bottle from Naruto.She had already finished the bottle before Sasuke stepped in.

"Temari…maybe you shouldn't drink so much sa-"

Temari's hand collided with Sasuke's face.

"I'll drink as much as…mmm…I want!"

Temari was tripping over herself and was hiccoughing a lot.

"Choose who you want now Sasuke-kooooooooon!"

Sasuke hesitated.

'_Who should I pick?Well,it's pretty obvious who I should pick.I should pick-'_

"Sakura-chan!"

Sakura's jaw fell.

"Huh?"

Temari stopped dancing around.

"WHAT?"

Naruto dropped a bottle of sake and it shattered to pieces.

"That's right."

Sasuke walked up to Sakura and gave her a lazy kiss on the cheek.

"I pick…Sakura!"

Temari stared at Sakura furiously.Sakura just shrugged.

"How could you do this,Sasuke-kun?"

"I just…don't like you."

"Yay Sakura-chan!"

Naruto began cheering and the rest of her friends followed up.Sakura blushed and looked at the floor.Then she turned to look into Sasuke's onyx eyes.

"Why,Sasuke-kun?"

"I really like you Sakura.I liked you from the first time we met."

Sakura cocked her head to the side.

"The first time I met you…I was dressed as a guy."

Sasuke shivered uneasily.

"Ew…I meant like the first time I met you when you were dressed as a girl."

"Oh…okay."

Sakura smiled as they sat down at a table.

"Hey.Look at Temari and Shikamaru over there."

Sasuke pointed at a corner of the room where Temari was flirting non-stop with the lazy nara.

"How cute."

Sakura smiled and Sasuke returned her smile with an even broader one.

"Whoa…calm down there.You're going to bust your jaw."

Sakura laughed.

"Shut up forehead girl."

She hit him on the head and he glared at her.

'_If it wasn't for me losing.I probably wouldn't be with Sasuke right now.I guess that I'm pretty lucky for coming up as second best.'_

"I hate you!"

The pink haired girl sighed.

"Yeah,yeah.I love you too."

Sakura gave the unexpecting Sasuke a kiss and he blushed.

"I guess the old saying's right."

Sasuke raised an eyebrow at her.

"What are you talking about,Haruno?"

"First place isn't exactly the best."

_**THE END…?**_

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**Author's final note…**

Well,this is the end of my sasusaku fic.I hope you enjoyed it!I'll have other fics in the works soon .


	25. Epilogue

**_1ST PLACE ISN'T EXACTLY THE BEST_**

_**-Epilogue-**_

_**You thought that I would end it there,didn't you?**_

"Come one Sasuke-kun!Please?"

"No,Sakura."

"Why not?"

"Because I said so!"

Sakura looked at Sasuke with her puppy-dog look in her emerald green eyes.

"Oh come on!Don't do that to me!"

Sakura added a pout to her sad face.

"(sigh) Fine Sakura…"

"Yes!"

Sakura grabbed Sasuke's hand and half-dragged him to the entrance of a festival.It was the cherry blossom festival and everyone was going,except Sasukeh who didn't exactly want to go in the first place.Luckily,Sakura had perfected her puppy dog look and Sasuke was putty in her hands.Once they had made it to the entrance,they saw Shikamaru and Temari with the rest of their friends.

"Hey!Sakura-chan!"

Sakura walked over to where her friends were.

"Hi Naruto-kun.Where's Hinata-chan?"

Naruto shrugged.

"I guess that she's at the hospital."

Every girl surrounding him beat him to a pulp.

"Naruto-kun!Go to the hospital and comfort your girlrfriend!"

Naruto cowered under his female friends' wrath.

"Okay,okay!I'm going!"

Naruto ran off in the direction to the hospital and Temari let out a giggle.

"Hey,Temari-chan.You doing okay?"

Temari nodded at Sakura.

"I'm glad that we're friends again,Sakura-chan.I guess that I was just jealous that…"

"…that I was famous?"

Temari nodded timidly again and she turned to Sasuke.

"Thanks a lot,Sasuke-kun.Without you,I wouldn't have met Shikamaru-kun."

"Hn…"

"Sasuke!Be nicer!"

Sasuke looked over at Sakura as she nudged him in the ribs.

"…you're welcome…"

Sakura grinned and Sasuke smirked.

"Do you wanna see if they have an arcade here?"

His pink haired girlfriend smiled.

"Are you still into that stuff?"

"Why?I'm not allowed to be?"

Sakura gave him an innocent look.

"Well,after we had that rematch…I thought that you'd give up on arcade games…"

It was true that they had held a rematch.Only a couple of days after they had gotten together,Sasuke had become so big-headed that Sakura had kindly offered him to a rematch.She didn't seem so kind after she completely flattened Sasuke.

"Shut up about that already!And…I don't want to go look for an arcade anymore…"

Sasuke whimpered when Sakura laughed maniacally. Then Ino pulled up with some unknown person.His arm was around her waist and she was feeding him ice cream from a cone.

"Hey Sakura-chan!"

"Ino-chan…who's that with you?"

Ino grinned.

"Oh,you know Akimichi Choji,right?"

Everyone's jaw fell to the ground.

"That's Choji?"

TenTen timidly pointed at the now-slim Choji.

"Yup!"

Ino just laughed as everyone stared at Choji like he was the most interesting thing in the world.

"Hey,you don't have to stare!"

Everyone looked away innocently and replied with an 'I wasn't staring!'

"Hey,Sakura nee-chan?"

Sakura looked over at the person who had called her name.

"Yeah,Temari-chan?"

"I'm sorry for all the trouble I caused.I guess that I was way out of hand.I also have to apologize for forcing you and Sasuke apart.It was totally not like me."

Sakura looked over at Sasuke.

"Liking Sasuke will do that to you."

Temari chuckled.

"Really,huh?"

"Yup.I had to dress up as a guy to get his attention at first."

"Did he ignore you,or what?"

"What do you think?He's Sasuke isn't he?"

"You got that right!"

Sasuke butted into their conversation.

"Hey!Sakura-koi!I just found out that they have an arcade here too!"

Sakura cocked her head to the side and her pink locks fell to the side.

"So?"

"I bet I can beat you there too!"

"You can not beat me at anything twice!"

"Oh yeah,wanna bet?"

"Yeah,sure!"

All of their friends watched interestedly at the couple arguing over who was better.

"I'm better than you Haruno!"

"What the hell are you talking about,Uchiha?"

"I'm talking about me always being better than you!"

"You are not better than me!"

"I bet that I'm better than you at running!"

Sakura's friends were whispering amongst each other.

"I don't think that they're really together yet."

"I think so too,Ino-chan."

"What are you talking about?They're obviously together!"

Choji pointed to at the couple who were racing down the street to get to the arcade first.Temari sighed.

"Here we go again…"

_**THE END…**_

IT'S REALLY THE END NOW…I THINK


End file.
